


Don't mix Nuka with Steel

by nukaworld



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst, Banter, Canon-Typical Violence, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Flirting, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Probably Both, Slavery, Slow Burn, Smut, exploring Maxson's backstory and inner thoughts a lot, nate will make you laugh, or you'll want to slap him
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:08:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 48,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27945071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nukaworld/pseuds/nukaworld
Summary: Two years ago, the sole survivor of Vault 111 tried his luck into the Gauntlet. After months of learning into the Wasteland, his experience and the precious help of Porter Gage led him to victory against Colter.The year is 2289. Nate is the powerful Overboss of Nuka World. But as his kingdom keeps growing into the Commonwealth, attacks from the Brotherhood of Steel increased.But why fighting each other, while a bigger threat grows below their feet?A story in which Nate and Elder Maxson must put aside their small quarrel in order to destroy the Institute.
Relationships: Arthur Maxson/Male Sole Survivor, Arthur Maxson/Sole Survivor
Comments: 84
Kudos: 39





	1. A lucky dickhead

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there everyone!  
> So it's my very first work I'm posting here, so big stress for me omg.  
> First of all, english is not my first language, so really sorry for mistakes and all! Do not hesitate to correct me, it will only help me improve! :)  
> Also, this story is very important to me, since Maxson cannot be romanced in the game, it's basically me writing my Overboss playthrough correctly. So, please, leave a comment if you like it! I love when people tell me what they liked when they read my stuff! :)  
> Anyway, I'm gonna stop here, and let you guys enjoy the first chapter!

His head hurt. 

Like a whole nuke exploded right into his skull.

Nate growled, his fingers slowly stroking between his blond hair. Struggling to get up, almost falling on the empty bottles around his bed, he stumbled across the Fizztop Grille’s patio. His forearms rested on the railing, his eyes lost on the horizon, the green of his iris going from the Dry Rock Gulch’s roller coaster to the pond just below.

“Boss?” Gage’s voice echoed behind his back. 

Nate turned his head towards his second in command, a tired smile on his lips. 

“What’s up, Gage? I didn’t hear you coming in.” Talking hurt his head even more. God, how much bourbon did he drink last night?

“Like you could even do that. I thought that the booze finally got your liver last night.” Concern through his voice, Gage got closer to him. 

These last two years, Gage has been more than a soldier under his orders. He saved his life in the Gauntlet, and many more times after that. Nate didn’t give his trust to many people since his escape from the vault, but Gage was among the few VIPs to gain it.

When the bombs fell, he was having lunch at his neighbor’s house. Nora and her son Shaun were the closest he got from family. Originally from a small town in Texas, he left to join the army as soon as he turned eighteen. Four years to serve. Four years to gain the respect of his peers. Four years to earn so much experience in combat. 

But only one second for a landmine to explode next to him. 

The deafening noise. The earth shaking under his feet. And the utter silence. Only this high pitch whistle in his head while he was struggling to breath, his eyes burning. If he hadn’t been in power armor, Nate would be long dead by now.

He took him weeks of recovery in a military hospital on the Alaskan border to regain roughly eighty percent of right arm functions, but not enough to stay in the ranks.

His mind also suffered a great deal of damages in the incident. 

Nightmares. Flashbacks. The crippling guilt that came with the death of his brothers in arms. 

The sole survivor, a first time.

A veteran at the young age of 22 years old.

After those events, Nate left for the North-East of the US, heading for a new, calm life in the suburb of Sanctuary Hills. He got close to the single mother living in the house facing his, the two of them quickly becoming good friends. Nora was helping him with all the legal stuff coming with his _honorable_ discharge from the army, and he helped her with her old car.

Everything was simple. Until the bombs. Until the vault.

Decades later, Nate woke up from the cryogenic stasis he’s been put into, only to see Nora being murdered and Shaun taken away from her arms. Unable to scream. Unable to help them. 

And put back to sleep right after.

“Hey, are you with me?” Gage asked, forcing Nate back into his present life. 

“Yeah, hum.” Nate cleared his throat, looking into Gage’s eye. “Sorry, I was just… thinking about some stuff. Anyway, what’s going on? Why are you here so early?”

“For fuck’s sake, man. It’s the afternoon already.” He laughed, hitting Nate’s shoulder with his fist. “I come bearing bad news. One of our outposts near Diamond City has been attacked by the Brotherhood.”

“Jesus fucking Christ!” Nate yelled between his gritted teeth, his foot kicking the elevator’s engine. “Don’t those cunts in power armors have anything else to do? I don’t know, maybe clear the Commonwealth of super mutants?”

Twice this month. Twice, the Brotherhood of Steel attacked their outpost. 

The first time, the Pack managed to push them back, at the cost of three deaths among the gang. Mason was even less pleased than he was.

“What’s the price this time?” The Overboss asked, walking back into the room to put some clothes on. 

“They attacked Hangman's alley. Two operators are dead.”

“Shit. Mags is gonna make me suffer for this.”

“Well, about that…” Gage stopped, a grin across his lips.

“What?”

“She’s downstairs.”

“Fuck my life.” Nate whispered, adjusting his shirt before taking his lucky knife with him, a fine blade he took right from Nisha’s corpse after her betrayal. “And stop smirking like that, asshole!” He finally said to Gage, before getting down the stairs.

Mags was leaning against the wall, near the building entrance. Her blond hair was tied, as usual. The leader of the Operators had always been one of Nate’s close council. She and him developed a friendship based on mutual respect, and thirst for caps. All too simple, but enough to be unbreakable. 

She was here for him when he took over Colter, when he was still lost among the three gangs of Nuka-World, with no idea how to deal with them, less be their leader. 

“Fucking hell, Nate!” She exclaimed as Nate came down the stairs. “You’re letting my crew become target practice for the Brotherhood, now?”

“Yeah, didn’t you get the memo? I’m a full member now. Fuck Nuka-World, and Ad Victoriam!” He said with a forced laugh. “I’m done with this. This was the last attack. We can’t have those twats coming into our territory to dictate their laws.”

“What are you planning to do, then?” Gage asked, coming next to them.

Nate sighed, his fingers pinching the bridge of his many times broken nose. His head still hurt from the hangover and his body was already asking him for more. “The two of you, go fetch Mason. We’ll meet here in an hour.”

“Are you gonna come up with a plan on such short notice?” Mags asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No. We’ll brainstorm something together.”

“Why not now, then?”

“I’m gonna take a shower.” _And I need a drink. Or five_.

“Fine. Mags, let’s go.” Gage gently tapped Nate’ back before heading out with Mags.

The liquor fell down Nate’s throat, with the bittersweet taste of vodka on his tongue. It was his second glass. The minimum, to stop the aching feeling of need. 

Nate quickly swallowed some squirrel bits, took his knife and closed the door behind him. As he walked down the stairs, he could already hear voices echoing into the lobby of the Fizztop Grille. Mason and Mags seem to be disagreeing on some merchant, while Gage was watching, his famous grin still decorating his mouth.

“Let’s get down to it.” Nate said, without taking a second to figure out who was right and who wasn’t. He sat on his chair, looking at his council taking places around him.

“You smell better than earlier.” Gage sneered, putting his boots on the table.

“It’s your mom’s perfume.” Nate answered, smirking at his second in command. “Anyone wanna make a comment before we start?”

The three of them shook their heads.

“Good. How did they attack this time?”

“A vertibird. Considering the layout of Hangman’s alley, they were smart.” Mags answered. “They would not have stood a chance on foot.”

“That’s why our crew wasn’t able to shoot back. The Brotherhood got them like molerats.” Gage added.

“Send a small group to one of the farms near the outpost. They will provide us with materials to build more effective turrets. And Mags, make sure your men put them higher this time.”

“Will do, Overboss.” 

“What about the other outposts?” Mason asked. “They’re not gonna stop here.”

Mason was right, if the Brotherhood of Steel decided to be at war with Nuka-World, it was only the beginning. 

“They won’t. But we gotta make them.”

“How?” Mason asked again. He always followed Nate’s directions, but oftenly tried to get his own ideas in the final decision.

“I wish we could just blow up their fucking aircraft, but it hurts to admit we do not have this power.” Nate sighed. 

He thought about it–finding a way to get inside the Prydwen and put an end to them. 

But that was the main problem: they could not get inside. They would be shot dead even before trying to board one of the vertibirds.

“Fire power is no use, besides defending the outposts.” Gage added.

A silence followed. A heavy silence that seemed to last hours before Mags finally cleared her throat. 

“Why not talk to them?”

“What?” Nate said immediately, unbelief painted on his features.

“I’m being serious here. Listen, if you and Gage didn’t talk before you faced Colter, you wouldn’t be here. When you became Overboss, we didn’t shoot each other. We talked. I know it’s kinda hard to get into your raider’s brains, but sometimes, a good speech does wonders.”

“What the fuck is going on with you?” Mason said, his brows furrowed at Mags.

“Yeah, what the fuck? How can this even work?” Nate sat himself straight, his green eyes looked in Mags’. “We just head over the Boston Airport and ask to speak to… what’s his name again, Maxson?”

_Arthur Maxson_. Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel. 

Nate barely knew anything about him–only that he was the one in charge and that his dynasty’s reputation preceded him.

“Something like that, yeah.” Mags shrugged.

“That’s suicide.” Gage added. “Look at him!” He pointed his finger at Nate. “It’s like he got _raider_ written all over his face. We can’t pretend he’s some damsel in distress.”

“Ouch, bro. It really hurts that you don’t see me as delicate as I truly am.”

“Why hide the fact that he’s a raider?” Mason said, surprising everyone around the table. “I mean, if you go over there to talk to that Maxson guy, which I think is a shit idea, it’s to talk about _us_. Not to play a fucking part.”

“Gotta admit it, the brahmin fucker is right.” Mags laughed and Mason kicked her under the table.

“Mason’s right.” Nate added. “Plus, the Brotherhood wants to give this message of democracy to the Commonwealth. It wouldn’t be very democratic of them to shoot the leader of the neighbor government.”

“You terrorize farmers all around the Commonwealth to give the outposts the supplies they need.” Gage said.

“A small detail.” Nate shrugged, smiling with pride.

“I still think it’s suicide, boss.” Gage added. He had concern in his voice, like earlier this afternoon.

“Have I ever run away from certain death?” Nate asked, turning his head towards him.

“I fucking hate you.”

“I love you, Porter Gage.”

“Do you guys wanna have a moment alone, or can we decide what to do here?” Mags sighed, her eyes rolling.

“It’s all decided. I’m going back to the Commonwealth, and I’ll gently ask Mister Maxson to stop his bullshit.” Nate said, his tone putting an end to Gage disagreement talk. “Get back to work. Mags, ask Lizzie to get some Rad-X and stimpaks. Mason, we’ll need food.”

“Boss, we should attack them.” Mason growled.

“With what? Farmers are no match to us, yes. But the BoS would shred us if we came on their territory.”

Mason sighed, his jaw clenched. 

“This is the best chance we got.” Nate added. “Anything to add?”

The gang leaders shook their head, and headed towards the exit of the lobby. Left alone with Gage, Nate stood up.

“I’ll get our weapons ready.” Gage said, mimicking Nate.

“Gage?”

“Yeah, boss?”

“Thank you. You’re already planning to have my back on this, even though you disagree with me.”

“You’re a dickhead. But a fucking lucky dickhead. This better works.”

Nate chuckled, a smile across his scared face. 


	2. Mashed tatos for the mirelurks

Arthur Maxson was young for a position like his.

Too young, in the eye of some of his peers. When he became Elder, he was still a teen. A boy. 

Only a boy.

But able to lead men, to take important decisions and be heard. A true warrior, with the brain of a diplomat. As if his name wasn’t enough to make him the _chosen one_.

Sometimes, he wished he would have been born to an unknown patronym. Just to feel the weight vanish from his mind, as much as the expectations coming with those letters: _Maxson_.

Last of his line.

A true heir for the Brotherhood of Steel.

“I’m gonna check your blood pressure now.” Knight-Captain Cade said, gently taking Maxson’s arm. “How’s your headaches going lately?”

“Better. Mainly at the end of the day, but it’s manageable.”

His blue eyes went from the wall to Cade’s fingers as he concentrated on his device. 

A few weeks back, Arthur started feeling this ache on the back of his skull, like an itch at the beginning, but it slowly turned into a stronger pain, sometimes preventing him from properly attending to his tasks. He only talked about it to Cade after almost fainting in his private quarters, ten days ago.

Cade spent time running a ton of tests on him, Arthur suspecting him of taking advantage of having the Elder as a guinea pig. 

“Your blood pressure is quite high. This doesn’t help with the pain.”

“Well, give me some pills for that.”

“I’m sorry to say it’s not that easy, Elder. It’s not like we got a whole pharmacology plant at our disposal.”

“What about stimpaks, can’t they help?”

“For a short period of time, maybe. But what you need is a proper treatment. I’ll ask our best scribes to work on it.”

Arthur quickly shook his head to the man’s words. “No. This won’t be necessary.”

Cade opened his mouth, ready to reply, but Arthur beat him to it. “And I trust that you will keep this condition to yourself, Knight-Captain.” His voice didn’t leave much space for debate. Cade slowly nodded, giving Arthur his arm back as he detached the device from it.

Arthur knew he was being an idiot. He knew that he should have said yes and let the scribes do their work, but he could not take the risk of the information coming out of the sick bay. 

The truth is, he was scared. 

Scared of what that pain meant. Scared of the reactions around him, if people knew. In his mind, the disagreement of his ascension to Elder was still too vivid. Like a constant reminder about how he wasn’t accepted by everyone.

They couldn’t see weakness in him, nor in the Brotherhood.

He was the leader of this organization and he shall stay invincible in their eyes.

“Would that be all, Knight-Captain?”

“Please, Elder, take it easy. A blood pressure as high as yours can become dangerous, even if you’re twenty-two. This doesn’t only apply to the elderly.”

“The thing is, I can’t take it easy.” Arthur said, his tone heavy. “I must go. I hope you won’t forget your promise.”

He jumped from the gurney and immediately took his battlecoat back. As his body turned towards the door, he cast one last look to Cade. “Ad Victoriam!”

“Ad Victoriam, Elder!”

Nate squinted his eyes as the sun appeared from on the horizon. The very first light of the day, running everywhere on Nuka-World.

From his position in the patio of the Fizztop Grille, the sight was breathtaking. 

“God, how much I’m gonna miss mornings like that.”

“You never see mornings, boss.” Gage chuckled behind him, struggling to fit both his handmade rifle and his packs of ammos in his bag.

“I’m not a morning person anyway.”

Nate cast one last look to his territory, before getting back to his preparations. He opened the chest near his bed to take his best pieces of armor out. 

This special set was one of his best prides–he gained it after defeating a powerful trapper on Far Harbor. The Marine armor kinda reminded him of the equipment he got access to during his time in the US military, for the only exception of the helmet he never put on. The memories of the feeling of being trapped and unable to breath under his power armor helmet when the landmine exploded were still too vivid in his mind. 

To this day, Nate never went into a power armor ever again.

“The Boston Airport is on the total opposite side of the map. It’s gonna take us a few days before we can even see the Prydwen flying over it.” Nate said, putting his armor on as he spoke. “I sure hope Mason got us some nice food. I’m not eating his gorilla ham again.”

“Gotta admit, the man got some imagination when it comes to cooking.”

Nate snorted, shaking his head with a smile on his face. Once his outfit was done, he walked over his weaponry’s racks.

“Oh yes baby, come to daddy.” His fingers closed on his favorite rifle, Overseer's Guardian. He put his left eye in the rifle’s scope, a reflex every time he took it from the rack. That gun saved his life a billion times already in the Wasteland and it was ready to do it again.

“Should I take a nuke?” Gage asked, raising his eyebrow as his only eye was lurking on the mini-nuke displayed on Nate’s dinner table.

“Depends. Are you gonna make a sequel to our adventures in the Nuka Galaxy?” Nate answered, laughing in his hoarse voice.

Two years ago, when Gage and him were cleaning out the different parks of Nuka World, Gage got the most marvelous idea–as they were stuck above the coaster’s tracks on a planet setting, robots shooting at them without pause, Gage found it logical to throw them the mini-nuke he had in his bag.

The height at which the fake planet was suspended was the only thing that saved their lives, but Nate will forever be burned on the left side of his jaw.

“It did work, though. No more robots after that.” Gage grinned.

“Yeah, and almost no more you and I.”

“That burn scar makes you look hotter. The clean look never looked good on you.”

“Should have seen me before the war, enough to give you nightmares.” Nate chuckled as he passed in front of Gage.

He and Gage barely talked about his past. Gage only knew the basic information: Nate was born before the bombs fell, used to serve in the army, got frozen up like a box of Salisbury Steak, saw his friend Nora being murdered and her son taken away, went out of the vault. Plus, some random memories from his wandering around the Commonwealth before his arrival in Nuka-World.

Nate gently put his rifle inside a duffle bag, just as multiple boxes of ammunition. He also checked that his lucky knife was attached to his ankle. They got almost everything ready, saved from the food and the medication.

Nate’s eyes wandered to his night stand, where an empty bottle of wine lied–he needed to bring that, too.

He lowered his gaze. _Don’t think about booze too much. Focus, Nate._

He sighed, getting up and putting his bag handle over his shoulder. “Gage, please be honest. Do you think this can work?” He asked, his voice far from his usual assurance. 

“By this, do you mean coming with our cute smiles to that Maxson cunt and rub his dick so he’ll stop his bullshit?”

“Yeah, something like that.” Nate smiled.

“No. Not a chance at all. He’s gonna throw us from his airship toy, and we’ll be like mashed tatos for the mirelurks.”

“I always hated crabs.”

Gage laughed, snorting as he got up to. His bag was barely closed, the zipper ready to explode from all the ammos he had stocked in. He was right, however. The last time they’ve traveled to the Commonwealth, they ran out of it. They managed to refill at the Graygarden outpost, but they’ve been wandering for two days with only blades to defend themselves. 

“So, boss. You got everything you need?”

“Yeah, we’re ready to go.” Nate said, already walking toward the elevator.

“Are you sure? I’m not hearing any glass knocking against your stuff in that bag.”

Nate shrugged without stopping his footing. “I’ll find what I need on the way out. Now, let’s go Scott Summers.”

“Up yours with your pre-war jokes.”

It felt like the room was spinning. 

The aching was back to his usual spot in his skull.

Arthur growled, struggling to sit in his bed. Sweat was running through his hair and his chest was pounding–the pain was not helping him breath. 

In the dark, his fingers searched for the stimpak on his night stand. 

“Fuck!” His voice broke, as he had a hard time finding it. Seconds passed, in which he threw everything that wasn’t what he searched for before he finally felt it against his palm.

Without turning the lights on, Arthur buried the needle right into his skin, already feeling the ache disappearing. 

Unfortunately for a short moment, he knew it.

It took a few minutes for him to regain his normal breathing. With his head inside his hands, Arthur felt his whole body calming down. The temperature in his private quarters also seemed to drop. 

Not enough for him, however. 

Arthur got up and put on a simple outfit composed of cargo pants and a shirt bearing the Brotherhood’s insignia.

The Prydwen wasn’t the perfect example of calmness, even during nighttime. They were always people walking around, keeping the engines running and the missions as well.

Arthur climbed down the ladder to access the bridge. The knight on watch saluted him as he passed by him, heading outside to find some fresh air. It was an uncommon sight to witness the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel walking around in common clothes. 

Heading towards the railing, Arthur took a deep breath–the scent of the sea cleared his head a bit.

His blue eyes looked to the horizon, on the skyscrapers of the devastated Boston. His mind racing, he started looking in every corner he could distinct from afar. Some were inhabited, showing light in the middle of darkness. Some were being dangerous ground, even for his men.

And somewhere among all those ruins of a world he didn’t know, the enemy was hiding.

Out of sight, the Institute was pulling the strings.

The ones Arthur needed to cut before they got the chance to get him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's chapter two!  
> Thank you all for the views, the bookmarks, kudos and comment, I really appreciate it!! It makes me really happy to see that you guys enjoyed the first chapter, and I really want to bring you more and more content in this story :)  
> Do not hesitate to comment, even if it's just a few words, it really means a lot to me!  
> (And as usual, if you see some horrible grammar/else, please let me know! French often messes up my english lmao)


	3. Not sure a ladder will be enough

On the first day, they barely saw anyone. 

Just a caravan near the Federal Ration Stockpile. They’ve stopped for a few minutes, talking about how the east got more dangerous those last few months. Nate listened to every word coming out of the merchant’s mouth, as he was telling them of the deathclaws’ nests just outside central Boston.

Nate had cast a look to Gage, with a faint of worry. They didn’t really fear other people, but those creatures, they were unpredictable–fast, powerful, unstoppable. 

Nate had his fair share of them in the previous years, his first being the one in Concord. He could still remember the way his heart stopped when he saw that big ass lizard coming out of the sewer, ready to go on a full rampage on the raiders shooting at him and the Minutemen. Nightmares followed the nights after.  _ As if he didn’t have enough of them already _ .

On the fourth day, they raided a position held by the Minutemen. A bunch of them had established a small colony inside Big John’s Salvage, managing to kick the Super Mutants’ asses from it. That small success didn’t prevent them from being properly protected, however. Nate and Gage managed to sneak inside during the night and surprised the armed ones at gunpoint. 

This little attack got them food and ammunition supplies, as well as some more radiation medications–and three bottles of vodka, which should be enough to last until they’d finally got to their destination.

The same night, Nate’s mind played a trick on him.

He was  _ there _ , again. It felt so real, as if the snow from the Alaskan sky was falling on the Commonwealth, landing on his power armor. The voices of his brothers in arms resonated around him. Collins cursing against the reds vigorously as he always did. Michaels laughing in his trail. And that noise. That awful noise that came with Meyer’s step.  _ Click _ . And they knew. 

Before Meyer even thought of moving his foot, they knew.

The explosion came and the emptiness followed. Nate felt trapped in his own armor as he struggled to catch his breath, with a violent pain running in his arm. He could still hear the agonizing sound of everyone’s voices.

And his own scream, in the dark of the night.

Gage, immediately reacting as he caught his rifle, looked for the threat. “Boss?” He whispered in a half breath.

It took Nate a good amount of time to finally picture the reality–he was not in Alaska. He was here, inside the Boylston Club, sitting in his sleeping bag. He could feel the shivering on his sweating skin. 

“I’m sorry, I woke you up. It’s nothing, just a dream.” He said, his voice steadying. 

“The war again?”

Nate simply nodded. They never made a fuss about it– Nate would shrug it off and Gage would let it go, not asking more. This night wasn’t any exception.

Nate took the almost empty bottle near his pillow, drinking the liquor bottoms up. He growled, the taste reviving the sensations in his sore throat.

And without another word, they went back to sleep.

In the early lights of morning, they were already back on tracks. With slow pace and light footing, the two raiders managed to evacuate Boston commons without getting noticed by anyone but some molerats.  _ How the fuck did they even dig in concrete anyway? _

Taking a left turn after a building, looking around to check for potential threat, Nate’s eyes caught a glimpse of something in the sky.

“Oh, fuck me.” Nate’s voice whispered and his pupils detailed the airship revealing itself in the sunrise.

The Prydwen was there. 

It was huge. Like,  _ huge _ . In the two years since he escaped from the vault, Nate never would have believed something like that could even function properly, considering the decaying state of the world. 

The airship was dominating the sight above the Boston airport, like it was the only threat the Brotherhood ever needed to display–that effect actually worked.

Nate swallowed with difficulty. For the first time since their departure from Nuka-World, his faith in their plan crumbled.  _ Hell _ , he hadn’t felt like that in months. His sensation of power took roots in his kingdom, among his raiders. But so far from it all, he felt helpless.

Nate hated it.

“You’re seeing this, boss? How are we even gonna board this?”

“Not sure a ladder will be enough.” Nate shook his head, disbelief on his face. 

He always pictured something big, but that was beyond any expectation. From here, he could see the vertibirds docked on the Prydwen. That option was out of any consideration, since neither Gage or him could fly one without crashing it the next minute.

No, their only chance was to come on foot, hands empty of weapons so they wouldn’t be shot on sight.

“Let’s go.”

Arthur rarely set foot on the ground since they arrived in Boston, his duties always holding him back aboard the Prydwen. So, when it was time for him to fly down to the airport, he always enjoyed every second of it.

Proctor Ingram’s technical explanations were a bit hard to follow, he had to admit. As much as he put efforts into learning more about it, he would never have the same level as her. 

“This is a blueprint of the main frame.” She said, spreading a document of the table. “We are missing the materials for this part, as you can see here.”

He couldn’t.

Well, he  _ could see _ it. But he couldn’t understand. That was beyond is engineering knowledge.

“What do you actually need to rebuild Liberty Prime?”

“So many components I can’t even name them all, Elder. Not to mention that this whole part,” She pointed at the corner left of the blueprint, where the details got heavier. “Is too difficult for me to work on.”

Arthur nodded, his jaw clenching. They’ve been working on this project for years now, even before their arrival in Boston. When they first heard reports of the Institute’s threat, he was the one to order the immediate rebuilding of the weapon. Taking the pieces with them to Boston had been one of the worst logistic aspects they had to deal with.

“Without Dr Li’s…” Ingram’s voice cut off, covered by the sound of the power armor coming right behind them.

“My apologies, Elder Maxson. But we have a situation at the western gate.”

“What is it, knight?” His arms crossed behind his back, Arthur gazed over the soldier’s shoulder.

Near the entrance were two silhouettes being body searched by his men.

“Those two are raiders.”

“Why haven’t you shot them dead already?”

“The blond one says he’s Nuka-World’s Overboss.”

Nate hated being touched. 

Especially by some weirdo, pseudo middle ages nerd. A knight, he said he was. Nate barely managed to restrain a laugh to the guy’s words. He knew how the Brotherhood was structured, but it always seemed like a fucking parody.

“If you keep squeezing my ass like that, I’m gonna start thinking I caught your eye.”

“Shut up, raider scum.”

“Ouuh,  _ scum _ . That’s a big word, someone is getting risky here.” Nate laughed, unable not to take a step back when the knight went to search him again.

“Stop mov…”

“What’s going on here?”

Nate turned his head in the direction of the man walking towards them.  _ Wow, that coat seemed lit as fuck _ . Nate’s eyes went from the man’s chest to his scared face. Observing the newcomer’s, Nate found himself unable to figure out how old he could be.

His facial features gave him the idea of a guy older than him. But his eyes…

Those blue eyes shined like youth. A juvenile aspect Nate saw before, into his own gaze. Before all of this. Before the war and the bombs. When he was just a young man, wanting to do the right thing by serving his country on the verge of a world conflict.

A gaze he surprisingly still had, sometimes–only when he was sober.  _ That never lasted long _ .

“There are only two of them that we know of.” The knight said, finally stopping groping Nate. “This one asked to see you, Elder.”

Nate’s eyes quickly went back to the one wearing the killer coat, surprise flooding from his gaze.  _ That guy _ was Elder Maxson? Nate always pictured some old, bureaucrat looking dude. Not  _ that _ . What did the Brotherhood didn’t understand in the word  _ elder _ ?

“So, you’re Elder Maxson. A pleasure to finally put a face on that name I seem to hear all the time these past few weeks.” Nate controlled his tone, restraining the despise he’d been fomenting since the first attack on their outposts.

“I am. And who am I talking to?” Maxson’s voice was a bit hoarse like Nate’s, mixing well with his looks–Nate could feel the authority in it. 

“Nate. Overboss of the Nuka-World raiders.”

“What’s your full name, raider?” Maxson asked as soon as he was done answering.

Nate smirked, satisfaction drawn on his lips. “Just Nate.”

Arthur’s mind was racing in the middle of the conversation.

He had heard about Nuka-World and the whole empiric raider organization. He had heard about those farms that got conquered like new lands to extend their territory.  _ Hell _ , he even heard about the infamous Overboss and how he seemed to lead raiders like no one else in the whole Wasteland.

Except Arthur would have never expected to see him coming here, on the Brotherhood’s territory.

He would have never expected him to be young either, under the scars and the burns across his face.  _ Just like him, in the end _ .

“And who are you?” Arthur asked, turning his head towards the raider with the eyepatch. Crossing his arms against his back, his eyes checked for weapons that his men could have forgotten on them.

“Name is Gage. But it’s not me you gotta talk to.”

Arthur kept his gaze on Gage for a few seconds. Gage’s body language was clear: he was ready to jump on any of them who would dare to attempt something on Nate.

“Fine, let’s talk,  _ raider. _ ” The last word held the despise Arthur could not hide. 

They weren’t Arthur’s priority, but they were enemies nonetheless. They terrorized the Wasteland, killing people on their path and leaving only ruins behind them. That was the reality of the Commonwealth raiders and Arthur knew that even if those two came from Nuka-World, they were still the same thing.

Arthur gestured to the men around him to escort them, in case of a trap. It wouldn’t be the first time that another faction attempted on his life. 

Climbing into the vertibird, Arthur took place next to the pilot, his hand on his gun. 

His blue eyes couldn’t help but to wander on Nate again. Arthur was intrigued–too many questions were crashing inside his head. What could be that important for Nate to cross the whole Commonwealth only to exchange words with him? Did Nate know any capital information about the Institute?

The classical shaking of the vertibird docking to the Prydwen brought Arthur back from his reveries. Arthur took the lead, walking on the flight deck towards the door to the command deck.

Nate’s eyes were looking everywhere around him as they walked in the Boston airport. His heart skipped a bit when he felt the vertibirds rise in air towards the airship and it skipped another one when he saw how high they were above the ground. It was a big difference from his patio on the Fizztop Grille and the idea of being inside something _actually_ flying wasn’t something he was used to anymore.

“How do you even keep that thing flying?”

“If you think I’m gonna give you any clue on how to shoot us down, you’re stupider than I expected.” Maxson replied, as they walked into a room with large windows showing the Commonwealth under them.

“Jesus, just being curious.” Nate shrugged, unbothered.

When entering the command deck, Nate noticed stairs coming down and a bunch of machines right under their feet. By the look on Gage’s face, Nate knew he saw it too.

“Seriously boss, have you seen this place? High tech everywhere.” Gage whispered to him.

“Yeah, maybe they can do something for your eye.” He smiled, feeling Gage hitting his shoulder with his. 

Bad move–the ass groping knight raised his laser pistols towards them.

“Wow wow wow, easy mate.” Nate said, slowly raising his hands. “It’s just banter, dude. Chill out.”

“Knight Howard, lower your weapon.” 

Maxson walked towards him, standing in front of Nate. A silence set in the room, before Maxson finally opened his mouth again. “It’s a fair reaction, raider. You know how soldiers are.”

“I sure do, I used to be one.” Nate answered, not taking his gaze apart from Maxson’s.

“Really? Who did you fight for?”

“The US Army.”

“What?” Surprise exploded from Arthur’s lips even before he could control it.

Nate was making fun of him. That piece of shit of a raider was wasting his time, and he was  _ fucking smiling _ .

“Surprise.” Nate said, with that grin that Arthur wanted to tear apart from his face.

It was simply impossible. The US military was long gone. The bombs put an end to it, as well as to the old world.

“If you’re here to waste my time, this is not going to end well.”

“No but for real. I come from Vault 111, ever heard of it?”

Arthur shook his head, his eyebrows frowned on his already severe face. “I don’t recall anything about this one. You were born in a vault?”

“Nah. Austin, Texas. Born and raised. I was there when the bombs fell and Vault-Tec decided to run experiments on their new freezers.”

_ That’s it _ , Arthur thought. That raider was fucking with him–this probably was a diversion while his whole Nuka-World army would attack in a matter of seconds. Arthur gestured to Knight Howard to aim his gun towards Nate’s head. “I heard enough of your lies.”

“No wait! Wait! I’m not shitting you here! I was born in 2054, and I served in the army. When the world got nuked, I got locked up in Vault 111, where Vault-Tec froze me and my neighbors. That’s the truth, I swear!”

Arthur’s jaw could have dropped, if he wasn’t clenching it this much. Was all of this real? Did that guy really end up frozen in a vault? Arthur couldn’t believe it. 

And yet, he couldn’t help but trust the assurance in Nate’s voice. “Why would Vault-Tec do that?”

“Hell, how should I know? I’ve been asking myself the same question since I got out.”

“Supposed I believe you, this doesn’t tell me why you’re here, asking to talk to me.”

He could see Nate’s chest pounding–adrenaline must have shot right into his veins when he was held at gunpoint. 

“We’re here to come to an agreement, so that your men will stop their attacks on our outposts.”

Surprise took over Arthur’s features once more. What kind of request was that?  _ Seriously, what was that guy on?  _

“This must be a mistake.”

“Yeah, how so?”

“I’ve never ordered attacks on you, nor your outposts.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so they met...  
> Guuuys thank you so much for the feedbacks, for taking the time to do so, it's so fucking cool!  
> I really love reading your comments, so do not hesitate!  
> Thank you so so much for the kudos & bookmarks, I'm so happy to see this story liked. I was really afraid for it to be a flop, since I got a very specific view of my sole survivor and the world around him. But I only want to continue to bring you those chapters!  
> Once again, THANK YOU! I'll come again with chapter 4 very soon (I'm currently writing chapter 8, so I don't get late).  
> Thank youuuu!!


	4. Like a popsicle

Seconds felt like minutes. 

Nate could hear Maxson’s voice over and over again in his mind. He was lying. That son of a bitch was definitely lying to him, covering the tracks of his men.

“What? How come then, that twice this month, our outposts in the Commonwealth got attacked by vertibirds and some weirdos calling themselves  _ paladins _ or whatever medieval bullshit you’re all on to?” Nate’s tone raised. He knew he shouldn’t, but he was done with all of this. 

Being Overboss wasn’t just fun and games, he had to protect his raiders. Make them feel understood and not abandoned.

They accepted him when he defeated Colter. He  _ owed _ them.

Surprise lingered on Maxson’s face, like he didn’t even understand half of his words. 

Maxson was walking around the room, his gaze jumping from the knight to Nate’s angry face. The colors of their eyes collided every single time, with the strange mix between their respective feelings about the whole situation.

“This is a mistake, raider. My men never went on missions against you.”

“Then you should ask yourself if you’re really in charge of them!” Nate’s voice was filled with anger. He was tired, so fucking tired of the travel they had to make. Of Maxson’s reaction. Of everything.

“Who do you think you are?!” Maxson’s reaction was immediate–he got closer to Nate, his eyes fuming. The rage incandescent in the blue of his gaze.

Nate’s body tensed, his jaw tightening as he looked right into Maxson’s eyes. 

They were approximately the same height, Maxson being maybe a little bit taller than him. God, how much Nate wanted to look down on him right now, just to feel better.

Nate inhaled and got even closer, as if personal spaces weren’t a thing anymore. 

The whole room was silent–even breathing became an option to the people around them. All of the room only waited for one thing: for the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel and the Overboss of Nuka-World to fight.

Arthur could feel his heart racing inside his chest, the need to ignore all the signal alarms in his head, and just knock that prick out.

Nate sighed. “I am a man who crossed the whole Commonwealth only for the sake of his men.” He finally said–slowly, like he was fighting against himself not to burst. “Do you really think I would have travelled this far, taking the risk of walking right into your base, just to  _ lie _ ?” He fake laughed, shaking his head in disbelief at the same time.

Taking a step back from Nate, Arthur swallowed with some difficulty. His head started to mess with him again, with the pain slowly rising at the same exact spot as usual. 

Arthur sighed, finally taking his eyes from Nate’s. His attention focused on Knight Howard for a second. The soldier was holding this gun tightly, ready to fire. With a gesture of his hand, Arthur asked him to step back.

Today was not the day to start a war neither of their faction needed.

“I’m afraid we’re having a situation here. I can assure you that the people attacking you are not from the Brotherhood. We already experienced the theft of our vertibirds by gunn…”

“No, no. Not gunners.” Nate cut him off, annoying Arthur even more. “Unless, they’ve suddenly got really into your clothing line.”

Arthur turned his head toward Nate again, his eyes already searching for any sign of lie or deceit in Nate’s peculiar, scared facial features.

And once again, he found none of it.

“They wore our uniforms?”

Nate nodded, casting a look at the other raider. What was his name again? Cage? Something like that? Arthur didn’t remember. His mind hurt and he had to focus on Nate. 

“Then, it seems we have a common enemy.”

To Arthur’s surprise, Nate smiled. He fucking smiled like the previous minutes didn’t even happened.  _ Fucking raiders _ , Arthur thought. 

Nate couldn’t help it–it was the nerves. A reaction in which Nate wanted to burst in laughter. Seriously, how fucked up the world could get? As if they hadn't had enough troubles, between all the shit they had to do to bring Nuka-World to its pride, or Nisha’s betrayal. No, they were now facing some random twats playing around, dressed as the BOS’ members.  _ Jesus, they even had fucking vertibirds! _

As Maxson called for some guy called Paladin, Scribe or whatever, Nate tried to manage his urge to laugh.

“I want you to check the history of every missing vertibird and the ones we’ve lost. Even those we thought destroyed. I need this as soon as possible.”

“Yes, Elder Maxson.”

“This is some big ass organization you got here.” Nate said, finally regaining his senses.

“I assume you’re more of an anarchy guy.” Maxson replied with a much lighter tone than earlier.

“Something like that, yeah.”

Nate had to admit, he kinda liked the guy. The way he stood his ground, speaking up for this faction without a single doubt–the way he seemed like a true man of action.  _ The shape of his chest in that tight uniform, too _ .

“We should mark this day as the one the Brotherhood of Steel had to ally themselves to raiders.” Maxson said in a whisper, like it was the end of the world.

“Yay!” Nate giggled with so much irony even Codsworth could have felt it.

When they first left Nuka-World, he would have never expected to end up in some alliance with those wannabe leaders of a new world order.

“Would you do me a favor?” Maxson asked, like he wasn’t ever sure if he wanted to.

“Depends. Does it involve body oils? Cause I’m allergic.” Nate shrugged, mischief in his eyes.

Maxson frowned, disbelief written all over his face. Nate liked that.

“What the… No, no. I’d like you to go under some tests from our medic. If you really were born before the war, it would be quite interesting.”

“As long as you don’t try to kill me in the process, this could be fun. I just love being the center of the attention.”

“Yes, I already noticed that.”

Nate winked, a grin all over his opened mouth, ready to reply. But Maxson beat him to it.

“Let’s go, then. I’ll take you to the sick bay.” And without another word, he walked away, expecting Nate and Gage to follow him. 

Gage, who didn’t miss a single moment of that  _ really _ weird encounter. “Boss? Please don’t tell me you’re finding him hot.”

Nate chuckled, gazing at Gage, then back on Maxson’s silhouette walking in front of them. “I don’t think he’s hot. He  _ is _ hot.”

“I definitely like you better when you’re dead drunk.”

Arthur leaned against the wall inside the sick bay, his arms crossed over his chest.

Nate jumped on the gurney, like he was used to medical exams.  _ Well, if he really was in the army _ …

Knight-Captain Cade had needed a few seconds to process the fact that the raider who managed to get inside the Prydwen was over two-hundred years old and still fresh.

“Do you have signs of ghoulification?” Cade asked, checking Nate’s pulse.

“Nope. Like I said, I was frozen. Like a popsicle.” His green eyes landed on Arthur’s face, his smirk like a trap. “Ever tried one of those, Elder Maxson?”

The way Nate said his name made it even worse. Arthur felt a weird sensation in his chest, like Nate sunk his hand right into it, but with a painless,  _ nice _ feeling.

Arthur hated that.

He looked away, biting his tongue not to say anything. He didn’t know what to answer anyway–he hoped it was the effect of his headache.

Thankfully, Cade broke into that moment. “You mean a cryogenic stasis?”

“Yeah, they put us in those kinds of pods, telling it was for decontamination. My ass.”

“This is… wow.”

“I get that a lot.”

There it was again, this smile on Nate’s face and the light in his eyes. Arhur had always thought green was a cold color–he had been wrong all this time.

The way Nate’s iris played with the light in the sick bay was making Arthur feel uneasy, like a threat that wasn’t really one.

“I’m going to ask you a few questions.” Cade said, taking his clipboard and a pen. “Have you ever had any serious disease?”

Nate shook his head, finally taking his gaze away from Arthur– he felt he could breathe normally again.

“Have you ever had any sexual encounter with another species?” 

“Well, I found a fleshlight once. But, after a few dick strokes, it turned out to be a juvenile bloodworm.”

In the background, Gage snorted loudly, laughing withNate. 

This had to be a joke someone was playing on him, Arthur thought–one of his officers had pulled this off, taking two random guys to play their part.

“I wouldn’t think less of a raider.” Arthur replied, trying too hard to hide his impatience, but it only caught Nate’s attention even more.

This time, Nate’s smile almost felt sympathetic. “I’m kidding. No, I never had. Only humans.”

“Alright, back to it.” Cade said, writing on his clipboard. “Do you have any vice? Troubles with chems or else?”

“Well, suppose I like a small glass of bourbon once in a while.”

“Or the whole bottle right away.” Gage added.

“Dude come on, not in front of our new friends!”

“You can’t hide me anything anyway, I’ll see it in your blood.” Knight-Captain Cade said, rolling up Nate’s right sleeve to look a proper vein.

Shock was the only thing Cade found. 

Right under their eyes on Nate’s skin was a huge burn scar taking most of his forearm and seemed to continue under his sleeve. For the first time since their encounter, Nate seemed troubled–wit and sarcasm completely absent, as they all detailed his burned skin. 

“I… erm.” Nate stuttered. 

Was he shaking? Arthur was almost sure of it. 

Arthur could only detach his eyes from the scar when Nate rolled his sleeve back down. “You should put your needle in my left arm.”

Cade nodded, playing as if nothing happened. 

Arthur almost felt bad for Nate. The way his colorful eyes suddenly went dark, his grinning smile gone–like Nate became another man, just in a heartbeat. 

Arthur detached his back from the wall, not sure of what he actually wanted to do. “If th…”

“Elder Maxson, Proctor Quilan is looking for you.” A squire said, erupting in the room.

Arthur’s movement stopped. His eyes met Nate’s, this time in a different way. 

“I must go. I will ensure that you have somewhere to rest on the ground. We will talk again later.”

Arthur didn’t leave Nate a chance to reply and walked out of the sick bay, this abnormal beating still hurting his heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand chapter 4, yaaaay!  
> I'm so, so happy to see you guys liked the previous chapter! I love reading your feedback and impressions on the characters!  
> In this chapter, Nate is revealing himself a bit more, so I hope you still can bear with him lol.  
> Thank you for the comments, kudos and all, it really fuels me to keep going with this story :)  
> I really hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	5. Wine is for breakfast

Pain rushed right inside Arthur’s head, the ache burning his skull as much as his brain.

Arthur could barely listen properly to Proctor Quinlan’s words. They’ve been here for almost an hour, talking about the new findings of the field scribes. Usually, Arthur enjoyed those kinds of meetings–he was always eager to learn.

But tonight was not the night. 

Since Arthur had left the sick bay, the pain was only getting worse, as if moving only aggravated it. 

Leaning on Quinlan’s desk, Arthur’s mind was absent. The words around him didn’t even reach his ears. 

He was overthinking.

Nate’s words turning on loop, over and over again. Those attacks didn’t make any sense. Sure, he didn’t watch over his soldiers’ every move, but none would be that reckless. Attacking outposts bearing Nuka-World’s flag was simply out of the question. Not a single member of the Brotherhood would take the risk to declare a war just for their own amusement–or so Arthur hoped.

He brushed his hand on his beard, his fingertips going from his jaw to the back of his neck. Pressing against the source of the pain relieved him a bit, but not as much as he hoped.

“Elder Maxson, is everything alright?” Proctor Quinlan asked, noticing how Arthur wasn’t really paying attention anymore.

“Yes, I’m fine. I got a lot on my mind, Proctor.” Arthur raised his gaze towards Quinlan. “Do we have anything on Vault 111?”

Quinlan couldn’t hide his surprise to Arthur’s sudden change of subject.

“Well, we got a fair amount of vaults documentation I can look into.”

“Yes, I’ll need everything you can find on this. I must go, keep up the good work.” Arthur said, standing up and walking out of the Proctor’s quarters. 

Another bolt of pain raged inside his skull, forcing him to stop moving. He growled under his breath, his eyelids tightly closed. Whispering in anger, Arthur fought to regain his strength to walk the short distance to his private quarters. 

Almost slamming the door behind him, he rushed to the bathroom to open the pharmacy box hanging on the wall. His hands were shaking. 

Cursing, Arthur took off his coat’s left sleeve to reveal his uniform and chest, where he buried the stimpak in. 

In an instant, he slowly gained his senses back.  _ But for who long? _

“Do you believe him?” Gage asked, pacing like a caged lion.

They had been locked up in a room in the remains of the airport for about an hour, now.  _ Orders of the Elder _ , had said the woman with the key. It was logical, however. Nate would never let a potential enemy roaming around his base.

“He seemed honest. But… seriously, we saw what remained of those attacks. It was the fucking Brotherhood.” Nate was lying on the cot they’ve been given, throwing and catching a tato with his left hand.

In his mind, Nate replayed the scene all over again; the sheer moment of panic when he noticed he didn’t have time to stop the doctor’s movements, the light casted right onto his devastated skin, the silence following in the room that became so heavy in an instant. 

Even Nate never looked at his arm when he was alone–he never wanted to. He would usually cover his arm while sleeveless, shirtless or even naked.

He was trying to get rid of that habit, but only when he was alone or with Gage. Yet, it felt like it had been too soon.

So how soon was it for a bunch of people he didn’t even know?

“Men could be going behind his back.” Nate said, keeping the tato in his hand this time. “I mean, have you seen the guy? He seems young. I can’t really tell, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if some high ranked dudes gave themselves their own orders instead of obeying him.”

“That’s exactly what I was thinking about, boss. Look what happened with Nisha and her gang.”

“So technically, he wouldn’t be lying. He just doesn’t know. But hey, good luck convincing him. Who would he trust more, two raiders or his men?”

Nate sat up, his boots meeting the floor. His eyes detailed the door keeping them from the outside–from the small window, he could see the airport full of life even in the middle of the night. Just like Nuka-Town.

“What’s the plan, then?” Gage asked, leaning against the wall.

Nate sighed, shaking his head as he got up to look closely through the window. “I don’t know for now. Fuck, I could really use a drink.” 

He rested his forehead against the door, closing his eyes, only focusing on what he could hear from outside the room.

Arthur had been reading old reports for almost two hours, now–files mentioning all the vaults they’ve explored since their arrival in the Commonwealth. Two years of field researches, summarized in papers all over his desk.

His hand between his dark hair, Arthur could feel his eyes tiring under the lighting. He needed a break. 

Arthur sighed, leaning on the back of his chair–that when his eyes finally caught a glimpse of the number he’d been looking for all this time. Vault 111. 

They had been there, or close enough to it to write about it.

Arthur quickly took the page, focusing as much as he could on every word. 

**_05.26.2288:_ ** _ We have found another vault, n°111, near a suburb called Sanctuary Hills. A red button in a nearby command station probably opens it, but all attempts to do so were a failure. Probably a malfunction. It is recommended to keep this location for an indeterminate exploration _ .

It was sealed. Did Nate lie, then? Did he really invent that whole cryogenic stasis story? To what end? 

Arthur sighed again. Every information he got led him into the opposite direction of the last one. He didn’t know what to believe anymore.

He was drawn from his overthinking by a light knock of his open door; Knight-Captain Cade was there, a piece of paper in his hands. 

“Elder Maxson, sorry to disturb you. But I got the results of the raider’s blood. And I’ve never seen something like that.”

“What do you mean?” Arthur said, getting up to get the paper.

“I think he said the truth. I think he really was born before the war.”

Gage was asleep.

Nate didn’t even know how he could, with all the noise coming from outside.

He hadn’t moved from the door, still looking around. Within the last two hours, he had plenty of time to see the BoS operate from the inside. It could turn out useful, if they really were messing up with them.

It was kind of peaceful, until he heard  _ that _ voice again. Coming from the blind corner of the window, getting closer, was Elder Maxson saluting the woman guarding the door.  _ God _ , how much Nate was amazed by that coat.

Maxson stopped right in front of the door, meeting Nate’s eyes through the window. Under the light of the airport, the blue from Maxson’s gaze was even shinier. 

“I’m surprised not to see you trying to escape, raider.” 

Was that a smile, in the corner of Maxson’s mouth? Or was Nate too messed up by weariness and his need for liquor to see properly?

“Shhh, don’t wake Gage up. Escaping would make too much noise for his delicate ears.” Nate grinned, even though Maxson wouldn’t probably see much of it in the dark of the room.

“I was hoping we could speak for a moment.”

“Yeah, sure. Open the door and I’ll follow you anywhere, Elder Maxson.” Nate said, resting his arms on the window ledge. 

A projector lighted his face and the smirk written on his lips. What he didn’t expect was Maxson to come a little closer. 

This had a sudden effect right inside Nate’s chest, feeling an abrupt heat radiating under his skin. His smile grew bigger on his full lips. Nate couldn’t help it, nor control it. He wanted to play with him. 

“Don’t try anything stupid. I know it’s hard for your kind.” With a single nod, Maxson ordered the guard to open the door.

Nate glanced at Gage, still completely asleep on his cot, then got out of the little prison they had been into, walking by Maxson without taking his eyes off him. Nighttime didn’t take anything from Maxson’s fine figure. 

Nate was drawn to him.

For reasons he couldn’t understand, as the hours passed, Nate would not cease to think about him. The way he talked. The way he walked. Hell, even how Maxson led his men turned Nate on.

“Thank you, it really means a lot that you think so high of me.” Nate said, walking around the place, looking everywhere around him, then up. 

Nate couldn’t lie to himself; the Prydwen in the night sky was a pure sight for sore eyes. How much resources did the Brotherhood actually possess for them to fly in such an airship?

“Even if I’m sure you would pay a good price to see her explode from the skies, you really seem amazed.” Maxson said, walking next to him, his eyes also looking up to the Prydwen.

“Are you kidding? This is insane. I would have never thought of seeing something like that ever again.” Nate’s voice was low, as if even the slightest noise could disrupt the engines from running.

Arthur let his eyes fall from the airship to Nate’s face. His scars and burns almost shined under the lights, like it was the only thing worth of it in the dark of the night.

How much fight did Nate get himself into to have such wound marks on his face? Was his whole body like that? Arthur guessed that yes, considering how the medical exam turned out earlier. What could have caused such a burn on his arm? Why did Nate suddenly darkened himself to the sight of it?

So many questions ran inside Arthur’s head. He had been right to inject himself with another stimpak before coming down on the ground.

“How was it, before the war?” Arthur’s tone was a bit huskier than normal. 

To his surprise, Nate smiled–not the usual bloody grin. No, this smile meant something else. There was no game in it. No challenge.

“Noisy, shiny, colorful. Everyone had everything. And then one day, there was nothing left but fear of what’s next to come.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Why? You weren’t there. This world is dead, but we are not.”

“And we need to keep it that way. C’mon, follow me.”

Crossing his arms behind his back, Arthur led the way to the vertibird waiting for them. Flying up to the flight deck didn’t take more than five minutes. 

All eyes were turned on them as they passed by the officers walking around. It clearly was something no one would have expected, to see those two men talking instead of shooting at each other.

Arthur led them inside the commanding deck. He walked to the bay windows, a habit he had every time he came in.

“Oh wow, this is nice!” Expecting to see Nate talking about the view, Arthur actually laughed in surprise to see him talking about the bottles of wine in the room.

“Let me guess, you want some.” Arthur said, walking to the cabinet to take two glasses. 

_ Drinking with a raider, how weirder could that day ever be? _ Arthur asked himself.

“Well, you took all of our stuff and gave us only tatos to eat.” Nate replied, holding a bottle to read the label.

“So, your soupers are made of wine?” Arthur took the bottle from Nate’s hands, brushing his fingers. 

It made Arthur’s heart jump in his chest–it also made Nate smile, which made it even worse.

“No, not at all. More like vodka. Wine is for breakfast.”

Arthur shook his head in disbelief–and amusement, too? Maybe. 

He didn’t want to think about it too much. He didn’t want to think about any of what Nate could cause in him. Consorting with the enemy was already more than enough. 

Arthur filled the glasses, handing one to Nate. “Please don’t get drunk, this is a serious conversation.” He said and sat on one of the sofas in the room.

Nate imitated him and let himself fall next to Arthur. 

“I won’t, but I can’t make any promise once we’re done.” The grin was back, as much as the feeling around Arthur’s heart. “In all seriousness, I also need to speak about a serious matter with you.”

“I’m all ears.”

“Would you consider having traitors in your ranks?” Nate asked, drinking his wine as if it was nothing, just a random question in a random talk.

Arthur shook his head firmly, negation already coming out of his mouth. “No, impossible. We don’t have that in the Brotherhood.”

“They were dressed as BoS members.”

“This wasn’t us.”

“Listen, man…” Nate sighed, slowly brushing his face with his long fingers. Arthur’s gaze lost itself on them for a moment. They seemed gracile, far from the idea of war and raiding. “I’m not making this up. Trust me, I have stuff to do and coming this far is not some kind of funny exploration to me. I have a responsibility towards my gangs and I won’t abandon them to those attacks.”

Arthur looked up to Nate’s face.–there was exhaustion in his eyes. Fom the travel, probably, but something else reflected through the green color.  _ Duty _ . Nate was a man on a mission, and he couldn’t fake that.

“There must be an explanation for this and I’ll do my best to find it.” Arthur said, taking the glass to his lips. 

Normally, he wouldn’t care less about some raider’s problems, but it involved the BoS and their reputation. What if those impersonators started attacking innocent people? What would the Commonwealth think of them? He had to put an end to it.  _ They had to _ .

“Is this real? Is the Elder of the fucking Brotherhood of Steel want to help us?” Nate giggled, resting his eyes on Arthur’s face.

“Don’t get your hopes high, raider. I just care about our reputation.” Despite his words, Arthur was smiling–he was gazing at Nate’s face too. 

Both of them were marked with battle scars. 

Both of them were leaders putting their organization before themselves. 

In two diametrically opposed sides of the order of things.

“Tomorrow, we will take a vertibird to go to the outposts that got attacked. I’ll have a closer look of the remains similar to the Brotherhood’s equipment.” Arthur finally said, finishing his drink before getting up.

Nate followed him to it, putting the empty glass on the table. “I hope that we will finally find the right answers. I really appreciate that. Maybe you weirdos are not as useless as I thought.”

“Yeah, and maybe you’re maybe not as bad as I thought.”

“Oh no, we are.” Nate laughed slightly.

Arthur turned his head, rolling his eyes when Nate couldn’t see it. “We have a busy day tomorrow, I’ll see that you get a proper bed.” He looked back again at Nate, smirking. “And no, I see your wit coming. It won’t be my bed.”

“Dang, beat me to it.” Nate answered, his smile making his eyes twinkle. “Goodnight, then, Elder Maxson.” He slowly walked by him towards the door. 

“Goodnight, raider.” Arthur replied as Nate had his hand already on the door knob, ready to get back on the flight deck.

“It’s Nate.” 

“Not to me.”

“Yet.”

Another smile. Another smirk. And he was gone.

Arthur could finally breathe properly again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guuuys almost 100 hits, I can't believe it omg!  
> Thank you so much for being here, for reading and commenting each chapter! Every time I get a notification, I'm just so happy to see you enjoy my work! Your reviews and you telling me what you liked/made you laugh and your theories are just a real pleasure to read!!  
> Thanks for the kudos, I only wanna bring you guys more and more content to this story :)  
> Chapter 5 is now here, I hope you enjoyed it and that it brings you a lot of feels just like it did to me when writing it!  
> (and ps, once again, if you see some horrible english grammar and all, please tell me!)  
> I wish everyone an early merry christmas :)


	6. In a better place

The door closed behind them, the small noise of the lock resonating right after. 

When he got back to the ground, Nate had to wake Gage up so they would be moved in a better room. 

Walking towards the bed, a good one this time, Nate let himself fall on it, a tired sigh coming from his lips.

“Did you suck his cock so we could have better beds?” Gage asked, also falling on the mattress.

“He wasn’t really in the mood for it.” 

“Wait, you tried?!”

“God, Gage, no!” Nate laughed, throwing one of his boots at him. “He finally got back to his senses. Tomorrow, he’s flying us to the attacked outposts so he can have a look. Big day ahead of us, so big beds.”

“We’re gonna spend the whole day with that uptight cunt? Fuck me, this is going to be a very long day.”

“Right? You better sleep.”

“I was asleep!” Gage said, throwing Nate his boot back.

“Back to it, then.” Nate laughed, tucking the pillow under his head.

He glanced one last time at the door before closing his eyes.

The vertibird’s rotor sounds kind of reminded Nate of the background noise in some areas of Nuka-World. The attractions kept functioning day and night, keeping the park animated. 

It was the sixth day since their departure.

Nate only hopped everything was alright there without them.

“Are you ready, raider?” Maxson’s voice echoed behind him.

Nate turned his head, his eyes looking at Maxson from head to toe. He was wearing a black BoS uniform under his battlecoat, same as the day before. 

Nate nodded. “We can’t land too near to the outpost. My men would shoot us on sight. We’ll have to do the rest on foot.”

“I see that you have hate towards us in the ranks of your army.”

Gage ironically snorted, shaking his head as he glanced at Maxson. “Nuka World didn’t start this. You did.”

“I already told your boss last night that it wasn’t the Brotherhood.” Maxson’s gaze darkened as he spoke. “Not my fault you two don’t communicate.”

“You both, chill out.” Nate said, his tone calm.

“I take no orders from you.” Maxson turned his head towards Nate.

“You’re gonna come on my territory, Maxson. You better follow my commands unless you wanna end up dead.” Nate’s voice didn’t carry any threat, but just the logical aspect of the mission ahead of them. 

He already knew his raiders would want to skin Maxson alive, even if he was with them. Any reckless action would lead to a clear declaration of war.

Nate didn’t need a second one in his life.

Behind them, the noise of a power armor got closer. Nate hated that–in his brain, it always played a vivid image from a past he only wanted to forget. Those last few hours had been a real challenge for his mind, between the military base and the power armors all around.

The man approaching wore it like it was a second skin on him–just like Nate, more than two hundred years ago.

“Reporting for duty, Elder.” The newcomer said.

“Let me introduce you to paladin Danse, raider. He’ll be accompanying us.”

“The more, the merrier…” Gage growled under his breath.

Nate gave Danse a nod. Great, another BoS weirdo on  _ their _ lands. Danse nodded too before putting his helmet on. 

Nate had to look away, too afraid of the potential flashing memories. This was not the moment.  _ As if it ever was _ .

“Well, now that everyone is here, let’s go.” Nate said, climbing aboard the vertibird. 

His duffle bag was here, waiting for him in a corner. He quickly opened it, checking if everything was still there, since it got taken away from him the day before. His fingers brushed the cross of Overseer’s Guardian, a smile drawn on his lips.

“You better not use this one on me.” Maxson said as he sat on the bench next to him. “It seems like a fine weapon.”

“Fine? This is the best rifle in the whole Wasteland.” Nate took it out of the bag, the feeling of having it in his hands reassuring. 

He then sat next to Maxson, still checking if his rifle was intact. He didn’t trust anyone with it, not even Gage. Only Nate had the right to carry it. 

“It’s funny, because,” Maxson revealed a weapon box from under the bench and opened it. “This is the best Gatling laser you’ll ever lay your eyes on.” Nate’s gazed widened as he glanced at the weapon. 

Nate never grew any interest in heavy weapons, but was still able to recognize the quality of those and this definitely seemed like one the best he ever saw. Nate gazed at the mods attached to it, recognizing some he already collected in the past on his victims, only to sell them a few hours later.

“Oh wow, Maxson. It’s so big!” Nate said in a prude voice. “I’m not sure I can handle it.”

Disbelief shined in Maxson’s eyes as he shook his head and put the Gatling laser right back in the box. Nate chuckled, and turned his head away.

Paladin Danse’s face was red with discomfort from the raider’s words, which made Nate smile even more. Gage, on the other hand, was rolling his eyes so much that he could probably see the inside of his skull.

They had departed from the Boston airport about two hours ago. Surprisingly, no one tried to rip someone else’s head off. Arthur had been quiet the whole time, overthinking again.

How could a team equipped like the Brotherhood attack raiders outposts? Who were they? How did they even find the vertibird and the uniforms?

Arthur had made a mistake allowing the raider to talk about it without being alone with him, but at the same time, it would have been too dangerous not to have anyone around him.

He feared this information would spread like wildfire all around the base, damaging his position as Elder of the Brotherhood. Every single mistake he made haunted him for days. As much as he wanted to, he wasn’t sure he was cut for the role. Well, he  _ literally _ was, but all those hopes put upon him weighed in his chest. All his life had been about the Brotherhood and his last name. Every second of it. If he could sum up his existence in one word, it would be  _ expectations _ .

Arthur didn’t want to disappoint anyone, at any cost.

“What are you thinking about?” Nate’s voice was low, as if he only wanted Arthur to hear it. “Is it me?”

That bloody smile was back on the raider’s mouth. Arthur glanced at him, detailing the scars on his face. Nate had this claws-like mark on his right cheek and jaw, ending in his neck. Three lines, forever embedded in his skin.

“What did that to you?” Arthur asked, mimicking the scar on his own face.

“A yao guai. It was the first I encountered, two weeks after I escaped the vault.”

“It must have been scary, seeing this world for the first time.”

“You have no idea. It took me a while to fully accept the fact that two centuries had passed.” Nate rested his head on the vertibird’s partition–his green eyes were slowly watching every single detail on Arthur’s face.

It made Arthur uncomfortable–he cleared his throat, looking away. But he could still feel Nate’s gaze on him. 

“You adapted pretty well.”

“I had no choice. Adapt, or die. My survival instinct kick–” Nate didn’t finish.

They suddenly heard a whistling noise. A deafening sound. 

The world shaking.

And darkness.

Nate coughed with difficulty, feeling a weight on his chest. His eyes burned from the sudden flash. 

He couldn’t hear anything, nor see. It felt as if he’s been hit by a fucking truck at full speed. 

“Collins? Meyer?” Talking hurt him even more. His throat felt like it was full of dirt, a taste of blood in his mouth. 

His fingers touched the ground, where Nate had expected snow, but the only thing he could feel was grass. 

“Michaels? Where the fuck are you? What happened?” His eyes only saw blurred forms and colors, as he tried to look for his brother in arms around him.

Nate suddenly felt some force taking grasp of him, dragging him. “Who’s that?! Collins?!” Nate fought back, trying to escape from the grip.

“Get yourself back together, raider!” A hoarse voice said, hissing in effort.

That when his mind started functioning again. 

Nate blinked a few times, forcing his eyesight to focus on the world around him. It wasn’t Alaska.

He was flying aboard a vertibird and they had been shot down.

Arthur drew in his last forces to drag Nate away from the crash–it was a matter of seconds before the nuclear engine would explode. 

He couldn’t find any trace of Danse, nor Gage. The crash had been violent–if they were still alive, they probably had been thrown from the vertibird somewhere nearby. 

As Arthur emerged from the shock, he had seen Nate struggling to move–he was way too close from the engine. 

Arthur didn’t even think, adrenaline kicking in. He had rushed himself to grab Nate, taking them as far away as he could from it.

With his hands gripped under Nate’s arms, Arthur stepped back as fast as he could. His heart was racing in his chest and he could feel an intense pain in his left shoulder. Arthur ignored it, putting all of his strength in his movements. 

A few steps, some more. 

The vertibird’s engine exploded. The blast heated them up, but Arthur had managed to get them far enough not to suffer from serious damage.

Exhausted from the effort, Arthur collapsed on the ground, still holding Nate. 

His chest pounded as his heart cried for rest.

Nate was breathing heavily–his eyes barely had the time to adjust when the vertibird exploded. 

In his back, he could feel Maxson’s chest having the same difficulty as his. 

Nate moved his left arm against his torso, but got surprised when his fingers brushed Maxson’s sleeves–he was still holding Nate.

Nate lowered his gaze to check if his mind wasn’t playing another trick on him, but it wasn’t–Maxson hadn’t put his arms away when they fell.

Nate slowly moved them away and tried to get up on his feet. His balance took a few seconds to come back, his body still shocked by the crash. “Gage?!” Nate screamed over the music of the flames. “Gage, where are you?!”

Nate walked a few steps, almost falling on half of them. He approached the burning vertibird, looking for signs of Gage. He kept calling his name, moving the vertibird’s parts he could touch without burning himself.

He found nothing.

Struggling to stay up, he walked dizzily toward Maxson. Nate extended his arm and reached for Maxson's hand to help him standing up. 

Maxson tightly gripped his palm, almost crashing against Nate as his stability struggled. Maxson’s free hand caught Nate’s shoulder on instinct before he could fall and take him with him.

They stayed a few seconds like that, needing time to regain their senses. 

Both out of breath. 

Both looking at each other, as if they needed to reassure themselves. 

“He’s not there.” Nate whispered. “I can’t find him.”

“Danse neither.” Maxson swallowed with difficulty.

“What the fuck happened?” Nate finally took his eyes away from Maxson’s and looked around them, as if the two other men would magically reappear.

But what Nate saw made his heart stop.

“Maxson watch out!” He yelled, pushing Maxson away to the side.

Nate barely had time to move when the yao guai’s paw almost brushed his torso. He rolled on the ground, escaping the beast’s wrath. 

It must have been drawn here by the explosion.  _ Or what is its territory? _

Nate didn’t have time to think–he quickly grabbed a burning piece of the vertibird, growling through the burning pain and threw it on the animal. 

On the other side of the crashing site, he saw Maxson getting up and noticing what was going on. 

They exchanged gazes, trying to think together. Maxson looked to the right, mimicked by Nate–on the ground, a few meters away, was a huge piece of the cockpit. Their eyes met again and they knew, without exchanging a single word. 

Nate grabbed another burning piece, aimed at the bear’s face and threw it with all the strength he had left–not enough to knock it down, but enough to dizzy it and give them the time they needed. 

Without waiting a single second, Nate ran to the cockpit with Maxson, both of them almost diving right under it.

“What do we do?” They both whispered at the same time, looking into each other’s eyes.

Arthur breathed with difficulty, his shoulder still hurting him. 

He gazed at Nate, then looked around them. They didn’t have much space under the cockpit and their bodies were crushed against one another. 

“Do you have any weapon on you?” Nate whispered, trying not to expose themselves.

Arthur shook his head. “Do you?”

“My rifle escaped from my hands when we went down. But I got a knife attached to my ankle.”

Arthur could feel Nate’s heart beating against his own chest. He looked down on Nate’s legs, seeing the strap on which the knife was.

“I can’t move my arms.” Nate breathed. “Not enough room. Can you?” Arthur nodded. “Alright, I’m gonna raise my leg, and you’re gonna try to take the blade.”

Nate slowly moved his thigh, scared of making any loud noise that would attract the bear. 

He raised his knee like he was about to wrap Arthur’s hip with his leg. 

“I promise we’ll do this again in a better place.”

“Are you seriously doing this right now?” Arthur hissed under his breath, making Nate smile. “I can’t reach it, you gotta go higher. And shut up about it.”

Nate obliged, his boot brushing Arthur’s thigh. 

Arthur’s eyes went down and his fingers finally caught the blade. “I’m really bad with knives.” He whispered.

“I’m not.”

“Alright, listen. I saw this big stone near the cockpit. We’re going to get out, I’ll grab it and throw it to the yao guai–”

“And when it will be staggering, I’ll stab it.” Nate completed his sentence. 

Arthur nodded, his hand reaching for Nate’s to give him the blade–he struggled to grab it, his arms stuck against the cockpit’s wall.

“Are you ready?” Arthur whispered.

“On three. One, two…”

They pushed themselves out, Arthur immediately running to grab the rock. The bear turned around and growled at them. 

Arthur took aim and threw the rock right into the beast’s head. “Now!” He screamed and Nate rushed to the yao guai, burying his knife into its skin a first time.

And a second.

And a third. 

But before he could go again for the fourth time, the beast pushed Nate off.

Nate fell in the grass, his breathing stopped by the shock. 

Pain rose in his body and his gaze widened to an horrifying sight–the bear with its mouth wide open, its teeth ready to rip Nate’s face off. 

Nate couldn’t close his eyes. He was paralyzed in front of his near death and only able to wait for it, ready to see the yao guai put an end to his days.

From the corner of his eyes, Nate saw something–a big rock pushing the yao guai’s head away. 

And hands. Maxson’s hand, tightly holding the rock as he hit the bear again and over again.

Screaming, Maxson crushed the beast’s skull with the stone, flesh and brain splattering all over them.

The yao guai staggered and fell next to Nate, its head only broken bones.

Above him, Maxson was out of breath, his face and battlecoat covered in blood. He let go of the bloody stone, and reached for Nate’s hand.

“Are you alright?”

Nate took Maxson’s hand into his and got up on his feet–he nodded, looking at Maxson. “Are you?”

“I’m not sure.” Maxson was far from the usual clean look he had. His beard was filled with small pieces of flesh and his blue eyes shined, highlighted by all the blood over his face.

Nate probably looked the same, as the bear bled like a fountain above him.

“What the fuck happened?” Maxson’s voice was shaking while he stepped back to look around them.

“I don’t know, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the yao guai that shot us down.” Nate said, already expecting Maxson to scold him for his words.

Instead, he chuckled. Maxson  _ chuckled _ to his joke, right after they almost died. 

“Oh, finally I can make you laugh.”

“It’s the nerves.” Maxson laughed and wiped the blood away from his face with his sleeve. 

Nate shook his head, still catching his breath. “C’mon, we gotta find Gage and your guy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is clearly one of my favorite chapters so far, so I hope you guys liked it!  
> Once again, thank you so so much for all the feedbacks, I really appreciate it :D  
> Seeing you involved in this story is clearly the best I could expect!  
> Don't hesitate to tell me what you think, to comment and all! If you want, you can even message me on my tumblr if you have questions or even if you just wanna talk about those dorks (or not, tell me about your dog if you wanna, I'd love too!)  
> Anyway this note is going too far already, so let me say one more time : THANK YOUUU


	7. Deathclaws are afraid of heights

They had been searching for almost an hour now, trying to find signs of Gage or Danse. 

Beyond their disappearance, something else was buzzing inside Arthur’s mind.  _ Who shot them down? _

He turned his head to the left, where Nate was, crouching as he inspected the ground for footsteps. 

“Hey.” Arthur said in a low voice in case some other threat was nearby.

Nate glanced in his direction, frowning. “What? Did you find anything?”

“No, nothing. Are you  _ sure _ it wasn’t some of your raiders?”

Nate sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. His jaw tightened and he cast a darker glance. “No, it’s not us. We were still out of range from the outpost. We just passed over West Roxbury when it happened, too far from Somerville.”

Arthur lowered his eyes and inspected Nate’s body–he seemed stressed out, like his muscles were as tensed as possible. Pretty logical, considering what had happened, but Arthur knew his question didn’t really help with that matter. 

Arthur sighed too, shaking his head. “I don’t know, ok? I’m just trying to find some answers here.”

“Well I’m trying to find my best friend.” Nate’s voice was harsh–he seemed so far from the character he used to play not so long ago. “Do you even care about what happened to your soldier?”

“Danse is one of my best elements!” Arthur replied with the same punitive tone, pivoting his whole body towards Nate. “Of course I want to know what happened to him.”

“Then focus on that and we’ll figure out the rest once we find them.”

Arthur took upon himself not to smack that prick across the face. It wasn’t the place and especially not the moment to do so.

Instead, he walked back to the wreckage, now destroyed from the flames. He gently placed his hand on a piece of the partition, anticipating a potential burn, but the fire was gone and the heat wasn’t much of a problem anymore. Arthur pushed the partition away and tried to find anything useful. His heart only hoped for two things: not discovering Danse’s burned body, and finding Final Judgment intact in its box.

They were defenseless. Nate’s knife would not be of any help against a powerful threat and they couldn’t rely on just stones. With the yao guai, they had been lucky.

Arthur went to move another piece of the vertibird, wincing through the pain in his left shoulder–he had landed right on it when the crash occurred, feeling an intense ache right into his muscles and bones. He didn’t think it was broken, however. He would have a lot more difficulties to move if it was the case.

Under the burnt metal Arthur pushed aside, he saw the shape of a charred torso with the head barely still attached.

Arthur quickly put his sleeve in front of his nose and mouth, the burned flesh smell suddenly taking over. The gruesome scene didn’t make him retch, but the odor was unbearable. With caution, he approached the remains of who he guessed to be the lancer. 

Arthur sighed, a weight in his chest. They had been searching for him too, but the violence of the crash didn’t leave much hope for the pilot. He bent to seize his holotags, already dreading the moment he’ll have to give them to his family. 

“Ad Victoriam.” Arthur whispered and put the tags in his pocket. When they’ll finally find a BoS patrol, he’ll send a team for his body.

Arthur turned his head to the right, pushing another piece of metal. There, under it, was the raider’s rifle.  _ Finally, a bit of hope _ . 

“Hey, raider!” He called for Nate.

Nate raised his head from the ground, his green eyes searching for Maxson.

He stood up and walked towards him–he wasn’t in any mood to play, or else. He was worried sick for Gage. They had been searching all around the wreckage and not a fucking trace of him. 

Gage couldn’t just have vanished from the surface of earth. He was somewhere.  _ Alive, please, let him be alive _ . 

Nate sighed at Maxson’s calling. “I already told you, it’s Na–” He cut off as he caught a glance of Overseer’s Guardian between Maxson’s hands. “Fuck me, where did you find it?!” 

Nate reached for it, kind of surprised not to see Maxson stepping back to keep it. Nate’s fingers gripped around the rifle stock, taking it against him to check for any damage. He looked through the scope and cursed under his breath. 

“What is it?” Maxson asked, not stopping his search through the vertibird’s debris. 

“The scope’s broken.”

“Better than nothing, you got enough ammunition for it?”

Nate quickly checked his pockets, feeling the three boxes he had put there earlier this morning while they were still flying. “Yeah, I had my bag too. Have you seen it? It was full.”

“No, no trace.”

Nate attached his rifle to his armor behind his back, before walking around the wreckage and looking for his duffle bag or a sign of Gage. 

He was scared, so fucking scared for him. Nate couldn’t even picture going on without him at his side. In the last two years, Gage had  _ always _ been there. Not a single time had they been separated for more than a day. Gage was more than his second in command–he was his best friend, the person that mattered the most to him.

The last time Nate wanted to cry was when he had seen Nora die. Now, he was fighting back his tears. He wanted to explode. Scream, curse,  _ cry _ . 

But not in front of that twat of Maxson. How could he barely give a damn? How could he act, walk, talk like it was nothing? Maxson was obsessed with the idea of finding who did this  _ before _ finding his own soldier. It was beyond Nate’s understanding. He was angry at him. He  _ hated _ him in that instant. 

But when he heard Maxson groaning in pain, Nate’s reflexes made him look up. 

Maxson was wincing, holding his left elbow with difficulty. 

“Are you hurt?” Nate asked, still irritated.

“It’s nothing.” Maxson answered, his voice betraying the ache.

“Doesn’t seem like nothing.” Nate walked among the debris, and put his hand on Maxson’s back to lead him farther from the crash. “C’mon, go sit there and let me check.”

“I told you it’s nothing.”

“And I told you to let me check. Sit.”

Without giving him a second to argue, Nate pressed Maxson’s right shoulder to force him to sit on a massive rock. “Take off your coat. Promise I won’t steal it, even though I want to.”

Maxson shook his head and took the right sleeve off. “I really thought you were going to promise not to check me out.” He laughed through the pain as he took off the left sleeve.

“You’re pissing me off too much right now.” Nate said, his gaze severe. He wasn’t joking. Not now. Not when Gage was nowhere to be seen.

Arthur tried to joke, and it failed. 

He felt bad. Clearly, Nate had boundaries he would have never expected. This wasn’t lining up with his idea of raiders–Arthur always pictured them as heartless people, not really having any attachment to one another. Just a bunch of scum smart enough to associate and recognize strength in numbers.

“Your uniform too, I need to check if you got any other wounds.” Nate said, his jaw still tight in anger. 

“The zipper is in the back.”

His blue eyes followed Nate’s movement as he looked behind to find the zipper. Arthur flinched a little when he felt Nate’s fingers do their work.

“Ok, tell me if I hurt you.”

Nate slowly lowered Arthur’s uniform on the left side, revealing a reddened elbow. There was blood. How had Arthur not felt it? 

“I’m no doctor, but I can try to stop the bleeding until we find one.” Nate said, searching in his pockets and taking out a roll of medical gauze. “We got nothing to clean it properly, so please, don’t go into septic shock in the next hours.”

“Do you always walk around with gauze?”

“Of course I do.” Nate raised his head to meet his gaze, his brows furrowed. “You’re really not used to field missions, Elder.”

“Not anymore.” Arthur said, wincing as Nate ran a bit of gauze on his wound to get rid of the exceeding blood. “I don’t get much chance to do so. My duties are holding me back aboard the Prydwen.”

“Shame. Must be boring, always stuck up there.”

Arthur often thought about it–taking the lead on a recon team, or any other mission that could get him some time away from his role. That was part of why he so quickly decided to go with Nate to the outposts–he desperately needed action.  _ Not this much, however _ .

Arthur clenched his teeth, trying not to growl when Nate slowly lifted his arm to wrap the gauze around his shoulder. His eyes looked up to Nate’s face–the look on it was so far from the grins and flirting glances he constantly gave Arthur for the past few hours. Nate was focused on his task and probably overthinking about his friend.

“I’m sorry.” Arthur half breathed. 

“What?” Nate asked, surprise shining in his green eyes.

“I’m sorry about earlier. For not taking into consideration how much you’re scared for your friend. For only thinking about the reason and not the aftermath of what happened.” His voice was low, as if he was himself surprised by his words–he actually kind of was, but he knew he had been wrong. He had to recognize it.

“I’m gonna lower your uniform a bit more so I can wrap the gauze around your chest. Otherwise, it won’t hold.” Nate said before acting. 

The way his fingers brushed his skin made Arthur shiver–he looked down on the ground, not wanting to challenge Nate’s gaze.

“It’s kinda my fault, too.” Nate surprisingly said, still concentrated on the bandage he was creating. “I mean, I said a stupid thing when we were under the cockpit. You couldn’t have guessed all of this would hit me after the adrenaline wore off. We don’t know each other at all.”

“No, we don’t.” Arthur growled, feeling a sting of pain running through his shoulder as Nate passed over it.

“Sorry, I’m hurting you.”

“It’s fine, I lived through worse.” He said, wanting to shrug before the ache stopped him.

“Like the time you got that?”

Arthur raised his eyes to look at him as Nate mimicked the scar he had on his right cheek. Arthur chuckled but instantly regretted it as pain ran in his muscles. “Yeah. I fought a deathclaw.”

“What was that deathclaw doing aboard the Prydwen?” Nate asked, raising his eyebrows in a mischief way before chuckling too.

So that was it. The raider Arthur met yesterday was back. Or he tried to, at least. Maybe it was his way to cope, Arthur thought. 

“It wanted a tour. Bad idea, deathclaws are afraid of heights.” Arthur smiled.

“Yeah I bet, if it lashed out on you like that. Did you give him a discount?”

“Sure, with some souvenir magnets.”

They both laughed, looking at each other.

It felt as if Nate’s grievance towards Arthur was already in the past. 

“I’m done.” Nate said between smiles. “I’m gonna close the zipper of your uniform.” He bent over Arthur’s right shoulder, his chest brushing his in the process. 

Arthur felt his heart skip a beat–he didn’t like that.

When Nate was done, Arthur quickly put his coat back on, trying not to use his left arm too much. “No, but seriously, it really was a deathclaw. You would probably hear a lot of rumors about it if you spend time at the airport.”

“And what’s the truth?” Nate asked as he put what was left of gauze inside his pocket.

“I was thirteen. I was still a squire at that time. I was with a squad and we got attacked. The deathclaw killed them all, but I managed to cut its throat.”

“Thirteen?! You were thirteen when you killed that thing? No, no you’re shitting me, Maxson. Plus, you told me earlier you were bad with knives.”

“I am bad with knives! I got lucky that day.”

“Doesn’t take away the fact that you were a fucking teenager! No wonder you’re in charge of the Brotherhood. I mean, if you don’t mention your last name and all.”

Arthur simply smiled and took his eyes off Nate to look around them. He didn’t really want to talk about his role and how he got to it, even less of his lineage and all the expectations put on him.

“The sun is fully up, now. I’m gonna check again if I can find my Gatling laser, and we probably should search for Danse and your man in a larger area.”

“Yeah, you’re right. And his name is Gage.”

“Gage, alright. Got it.” Arthur nodded as he got up to walk towards some pieces he hadn’t looked in.

Another hour had passed, and they still hadn’t found a trace of them.

Nate was starting to lose hope. If Gage was alive, they would have already found each other. 

He couldn’t even imagine Gage being dead and his body missing–probably in a worse shape than the lancer’s.

The Paladin was also nowhere to be found. There wasn’t a single trace of him, nor his power armor. 

Feeling hopeless, Nate looked up, expecting to see a body in the trees. He walked a few steps back, detailing the branches. 

That’s when he saw it.

A box, inches away from falling down.

“Maxson, come over here!” He said, waving at Maxson who was still searching the debris.

He walked up to Nate, something in his hand. “I found three stimpaks.”

“Oh fuck, that’s fucking great! You gotta use one right now for your shoulder.”

Maxson shook his head, putting the stimpaks away in his pocket. “Only if it’s a vital emergency. My shoulder is doing fine, thanks to you.”

“Oh and you’re gonna feel a lot better, thanks to me too.” Nate said, grinning at Maxson.

“I’m not letting you touch me anytime soon.” Maxson sighed, but he could not hide his urge to smile very well.

“You are a total pervert, Elder. I wasn’t talking about that,” Nate laughed, pointing the box above them. “But that.”

“Final Judgment!”

“What? No, it’s your Gatling laser.”

“That’s its name. Now c’mon, help me find something to throw so I can have it back.”

“Something like that?” Nate said, already holding a stone in his hand before giving it to Maxson. “I’m letting you do the honors. You’re really good with rocks.” He chuckled, still having some yao guai blood here and there.

“That should do it.” 

Maxson threw the stone, hitting the box and making it fall on the grass. He rushed to it and opened it to get his weapon out–it was intact, thanks to its container. 

“We’re safer, now that we have our weapons. Only thing left is to find Gage and Danse.” Nate said as Maxson walked up to him. “We should head up to Somerville. If they’re alive, that’s where they’ll go.”

It was the initial plan–flying to this Pack outpost, which had been attacked before Hangman’s Alley. Then to the latter, on the way back to the airport.

“I agree with you, Danse would have followed the initial route.”

They quickly grabbed everything they found useful, trying not to be overburdened. They didn’t have much ammunition, but they had to do with what they found. 

Arthur waited for Nate, who was adjusting his armor. 

“Are you ready?”

“Yeah, let’s go.” Nate said, coming next to him before they started walking.

“Can I ask you something?” Arthir asked with his eyes still on the road.

“Sure.”

“Earlier when you said I would feel a lot better, you were talking about  _ that _ , weren’t you?”

Nate chuckled. Arthur could feel his gaze on him. 

“Yeah, yeah I was.”

“This is gonna be a really long walk.” Arthur sighed.

But the truth is, he actually liked that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's chapter 7!  
> Thank you so much for the feedback guys!! You're making my day everytime I read your comments or see your kudos!  
> A BIG thank you to Kara for helping me with my english and other precious advice!  
> I really hope you all enjoyed this chapter, please let me know in the comments!


	8. I play soccer

“What kind of barbaric entertainment is that  _ Gauntlet _ ?” Arthur winced in disbelief.

Nate laughed at his reaction, shrugging. “Raiders’ ways.”

“This is beyond my understanding.”

They were walking for almost six hours, now. The first had been a bit awkward, both of them not really engaging in any conversation. It only started when Arthur asked Nate about his rise to power. Arthur was eager to know, in full honesty. How did a frozen vault-dweller manage to end up leading an army of raiders? How did he manage to keep it that way for two years?

“A lot of things used to be beyond my understanding for me too.” Nate said, as if it was nothing.

“Sure, but you weren’t even born in that century. Nor the one before that and you managed to finish that… brutal test.”

“What can I say? I’m good at what I do.”

Arthur shook his head, a bit jaded with Nate, but he was a fun company, he had to admit. Nate was far from all the raiders Arthur ever spoke to. The whole two-hundred years old guy thing probably helped.

“So, you walked through the Gauntlet and then, had to defeat that Colter guy, right?”

“Yup, he was in electrically-powered power armor, like he was a bumper car. This sounds so fucking stupid when I say it out loud, but wow, that shit was insane.”

Nate had a smile on his scarred face. He clearly took pride in his victory against the previous Overboss of Nuka-World. Who wouldn’t, considering the dangerous trial he had been through to even face him in the arena?

“Without Gage, I wouldn’t have made it, though. He helped me before I faced Colter, telling what to do to weaken his defenses.”

“He betrayed him?” Arthur raised an eyebrow, his face turned towards Nate. They were still walking. They hadn’t stopped since they left the wreckage. They needed to get to the outpost as fast as possible. Exposed in the open with not enough ammunition was dangerous.

“Gage was tired of him. The other raiders too. No one actually liked him, and he made a total shit show of Nuka-World before I arrived.”

“And the raiders, they didn’t care that you suddenly became the new leader? Sure, they wanted to get rid of Colter, but you got there and you weren’t one of them.”

“It’s the Gauntlet rule. Whoever survives long enough to kill the current Overboss takes his place. Anyone can try. I just happened to be the one who succeeded.”

Arthur was listening closely to his words. He actually took interest in the unified organization they had in Nuka-World. In the Commonwealth, the raiders never united–they were dispatched all over the Wasteland. They didn’t even seem to have any sort of government. 

“Have you ever defended your place, since you won? Did you have to fight again in the arena?”

“Sure, I got one once in a while. The last one, he used to be part of the Operators. But he got too cocky, and I told him to fuck off. This cunt really thought he stood a chance against me.” Nate had a mocking laughter. 

In the last hours since their meeting, Arthur had the time to provide himself with a simple overview of the man. He was confident with himself. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy to run away from troubles, nor danger. He was also kind of arrogant. And one hell of a flirtatious prick. 

Nate was the kind of person Arthur was not used to being around. 

In the Brotherhood, everyone was at his command. No one behaved like that with him and it felt nice, to be seen as someone else for once–to talk with a person who didn’t try way too hard to please him and make sure they would be in his good graces. Nate didn’t give a damn about that. He was not here to be friends with him and Arthur found it refreshing. 

“An Operator, you said. It’s one of the gangs, right?”

“When I arrived, there were three of them. The Pack, the Disciples and the Operators.”

“Tell me more about them.”

“Are you trying to know our weakness, Elder? I’ll remind you that you didn’t answer me when I asked you how you kept the Prydwen flying. You even called me stupid.” Nate was smiling at him.

Arthur smiled back. “I met you only five minutes before you asked!” 

“You got a point. Alright, I tell you about my gangs, and you tell me about the flying part.”

Nate extended his hand towards him, waiting for him to shake it. Arthur shook his head, softly laughing. “Fine.” He shook his hand, both of them still walking. 

Nate’s palm was warm, probably the effect from holding his rifle for so long. When he took his hand back, Arthur felt the cold coming right back in–quickly, he looked away and put his hand back on his Gatling laser.

“First, the Pack. They are weirdos, but I like them. They’re obsessed with the animal kingdom and all. They wear those little stuffed animals on their armor, it’s so fucking cute.” Nate said, taking a smaller voice that made him sound like a teenage girl before shaking his head. “Kidding, it’s awful. But they cling to it, so I let them. Some of them are freaking me out sometimes, though. Like, they growl like dogs or howl like wolves.”

Arthur snorted loudly, unable to restrain a burst of laughter. “No, no, no you’re shitting me!”

“I shit you not, dude! I swear, when I tell you they’re weirdos, they’re fucking weirdos. But they fight well, and they’re loyal.”

Arthur was still laughing, his eyes tearing from it. How did the raiders manage to control a whole giant amusement park with soldiers like that? He had to see that from himself, and knowing the outpost they were going to was controlled by the Pack made him even more impatient to get there.

He was still thinking about Danse, however. In the now six hours they had been walking, they still hadn’t found any trace of Danse or Gage. How could two people simply vanish like that? There was no blood, no clothes, no prints. Nothing. They must have missed something. Arthur hoped that his soldier was still in one piece, waiting for them at the outpost. 

But now wasn’t the time to overthink again–his head was still aching, and he really needed a distraction from it. Nate was helpful. He really was.

“Then, we have the Operators. They’re the total opposite from those raiders you got in the Commonwealth.” Nate continued, his eyes however focused on their surroundings. 

They had to stay alert, in case of any threat.

“So you really have nothing to do with them?” Arthur wasn’t really sure. Before he actually met Nate, he never really thought about the differences between groups of raiders. They hadn’t been his priority. 

The Institute was. 

And in a small corner in his mind, he was still thinking about it. All the time. Day and night. They were the biggest threat here. Once this whole outpost thing would get cleared out, he’d go back to his investigation about the Institute and its abominations. 

“We have nothing in common with them. We even fight them when we encounter their groups.”

“I had no idea. And so, how are the Operators different?”

“They’re classy, at a minimum, educated, and they bathe.” Nate chuckled, his hand in his blond hair to put them back together. 

That’s when Arthur noticed they had the same haircut–it looked really good on Nate.

“Their main motivation is caps, but they’re really good fighters, especially with guns.”

“You’re really praising them all. Do you want me to be afraid of them so I won’t send my men to seize that little kingdom of yours?” Arthur said with a bit of daring in his hoarse voice as he grinned. 

“You, in Nuka-World? You’d be crying to get back to your little cozy airship.” Nate replied, hitting Arthur’s shoulder with his.

His heart skipped a beat. 

Arhur didn’t expect that–he wasn’t used to that. Growing up in the Citadel, around the Brotherhood didn’t bring him much friends. None, to be exact. This kind of behavior, laughing and banter, wasn’t something Arthur ever experienced. Since he was a young boy, he barely had a relationship beyond his role in the BoS. No one to really talk to.

And it felt good, so fucking good to get to know Nate. Even though he would never say it out loud. Not to him. Not to a raider. 

Nate would use it against him anyway, to mock him or else.

Instead, Arthur simply smiled, shaking his head in response to his words. “And the Disciples?”

Nate made a funny face, frowning. “They are gone.” He said in a faltering tone, like he wasn’t sure he could tell Arthur about it. “I didn’t get along much with their leader, so I gave them less territory when we gained access to the whole park.”

“Because you didn’t rule over all of Nuka World at that time?”

“I was, but some areas of the park were inhabited by creatures or robots. We had to clear them. When Nisha, the leader of the Disciples, found out that I gave Mags and Mason more space than her, she tried to overthrow me.”

“But you’re still here, and Overboss.” Arthur said, his eyes navigating over Nate’s body. On his chest piece of armor, he had a sign painted: a skull reminiscent of the raiders, and Nuka-Cola bottlecaps circling it. Arthur guessed it was Nate’s emblem.

“I killed her. We got rid of most of her gang, but they are still a few trying to hide.”

“This in one hell of a story you got here. I never thought a vault-dweller would be capable of such things.”

“Well, I never thought I’d be frozen, then living in a desolate world to end up making a little road trip with the big leader of a weird medieval-style army. So now, it’s your turn. How can you keep the Prydwen flying?”

Arthur sighed–he wasn’t sure about all the technical details. “It’s th–”

His voice got cut off by a gunshot.

Nate immediately tightened his grip on his rifle.

He looked around them, searching for any sign of danger. Then another gunshot fired in the air.

“We gotta find cover.” Maxson said, his eyes detailing their surroundings.

“There.” Nate whispered, nodding towards a big dead tree lying on the side of the road.

Quickly, they jumped over it, hiding themselves. Nate’s mind started racing, putting the map back together in his thoughts. 

“Shit. We’re near a big ass Gunner base.” Nate hadn’t noticed, getting too distracted with their conversation.

“Do you think they saw us? The shooting didn’t seem to come in our direction. They’re probably practicing.” Maxson said in a low voice, trying to look over the trunk to see if anyone was coming near.

“No, you’re probably right. We should make a small detour in the woods.” Nate didn’t want to take any risk–they only had one weapon each, with too few ammunition to take on a whole base.

“I’m following you. You know this place better than me.” Maxson whispered to him.

Nate nodded, gesturing for him to follow his footsteps. Nate crawled into the depth of the woods, making as little noise as possible. Behind him, he could hear Maxson doing the same. 

How on earth did he end up in that situation? He was only supposed to talk to the guy, not lying in the grass with him, moving like worms to get to a safer place.

He wouldn’t have thought he’d have gotten along with him, either. As if this mission couldn’t get any weirder.

They crawled for a while like that, making sure they could barely hear the gunshots, before Nate rose to his feet. “Stay low.” He whispered. “I’m gonna check around.”

“Are you serious?”

“Do you trust me?”

“No.” Maxson said quickly, as if he didn’t even think about it. 

It shouldn’t even surprise Nate, but it did. 

He sighed, shrugging. “Fine, but don’t get killed.” He said to him, then walked around the trees, looking for any sign of life. “I think we’re good.” He turned his head towards Maxson, who was getting rid of the leaves on his coat. “We gotta keep moving, come on.”

Arthur had longed for action, but he hadn’t expected that much in such a short period of time. 

The Commonwealth really was a dangerous place–it needed the Brotherhood of Steel. Walking on its ground with Nate made him even more sure of their mission here. They had to bring peace back to it. Whatever the cost.

“Gunners.” Nate said, taking Arthur out of his thoughts. “They actually tried to get to Nuka-World two years ago, same time as me. Can you imagine a gunner Overboss?”

“No thanks, you’re more than enough.” Arthur sighed. 

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Arthur was lost between the urge to smile, or to push Nate into a bush. He hated everything Nate represented. The raiding life, taking advantage of people, the killings. 

But the guy was just so full of life, always having a witty answer to whatever Arthur could say. He wasn’t taking caution every time he talked to him. He didn’t even care about what Arthur could think of him. He was just  _ himself _ , and not playing a part to stay in Arthur’s favors.

Arthur liked that.

He felt like he didn’t have to try too much, either. Nate would not give a single damn if Arthur said or did something that wouldn’t be seen as  _ correct _ for his position. 

“Seriously, how can your raiders stand you?” Arthur laughed, knowing damn well he was playing with fire. It was a matter of seconds before Nate would take the chance to flirt or else. Was it a game to him? Was he like that with everyone?

“I’m a great guy! My grandma used to say that all the time, and I believe her.”

“You’re a pain in the ass!” Arthur replied, immediately regretting his words. “No, don’t say anything, I’m starting to know you.”

Nate chuckled, obviously thinking about at least a dozen jokes relating to Arthur’s bum already. That guy's imagination was vivid and fast.

They kept walking into the woods for almost two hours, Arthur following Nate and looking around them. Sometimes, casting a quick glance at him. Arthur couldn’t help it–Nate’s face was puzzling, between his scars and what was left of his young features beneath them.

But as he was discreetly looking at him, his blue eyes caught a glimpse of a silhouette behind a tree, a few feet away. And a second. And a third. Now four. 

“We’re not alone.” Arthur whispered to Nate.

Nate looked in the same direction as him.

The four figures were getting closer. 

And they had seen them.

“They’re gunners!” Nate said, already taking aim with his rifle.

Beside him, Maxson let his Gatling laser spin up for the fight they couldn’t avoid. “I saw four. How many do you count?”

“Four as well. We can take them.” His reflexes made him look through the scope, but he cursed as he remembered it got broken in the crash of the vertibird. He’ll have to do without it. 

Getting into positions, the gunners opened fire on them. They got closer to each other, and kept walking towards them as they shot in their direction.

Taking a deep breath, Nate aimed for one of the gunners and shot. The bullet flew right into the guy’s biceps, slowing him down.

“Good shot.” Maxson said, waiting for them to get a bit closer to use his weapon.

“I was aiming for the head.” 

Behind the group, one of the gunners threw something. 

“Grenade!” Maxson yelled as the object landed to their feet. 

Without even thinking, Nate kicked it and sent it flying up in the air where it exploded. 

“What the fuck?!” Maxson’s voice was a mix of surprise and admiration.

“I play soccer. How long before your Gatling laser can fire?” Nate asked, still focusing again on his aim.

He shot again, this time hitting the injured gunner in the chest. He fell on the ground, shaking from the pain. The other three were still shooting at them–they had to keep moving so they wouldn’t get hit.

“It’s ready, I’m going a bit closer.” Maxson walked a few steps towards the gunners, exposing himself totally to their fire.

“I’m covering you!” Nate yelled to him, this time aiming at the woman who threw them the grenade. The shot detonated in the woods, as well as the gunner’s cursing when he hit her in the shoulder. Still, it wasn’t enough to take her down.

Suddenly, a red laser light illuminated the dusk. Cries of pain roared between the trees, as Maxson shredded them with Final Judgment.

“Holy shit.” Nate whispered under his breath, looking how the three bodies fell in the grass–two actually, since one of them got turned into red ashes. 

Nate walked over Maxson, his mouth open as he looked to the Gatling laser. “This is a killer.”

“Yours is not bad either.” Maxson replied, gesturing towards Nate’s rifle.

“It’s useless without the scope, I should’ve killed the two I hit. Waste of bullets.” He said, already heading over the bodies to search for anything useful.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, you got one.” Maxson told him, joining him in his search. “Stimpak, good.” He said, putting it in his pocket with the three others he found after the crash.

“This one has boxes of ammos.” Nate’s eyes quickly read the labels on each one of them. “Shit, only this one is .308 caliber and it’s almost empty.”

“Better than nothing, it replaces the one used here.” Maxson stood up, looking around them. “Seems like these were alone.”

“Probably a squad coming back to the base.” Nate said as he got up. 

His body lost a bit of balance–quickly, Nate put his hand on a tree, preventing him from falling on the ground. 

“Are you alright?” Maxson asked.

He wasn’t. His eyesight was getting blurry like he was about to faint–he could hear a whistling noise, almost preventing him from hearing anything else.

“Hey, are you alright?” Maxson asked again, getting closer to him. 

“I’m fine, I’m fine. I just stood up too fast. I probably hit my head too hard when we crashed.” It wasn’t the truth. Nate knew what was going on with him, for he had already been through it a few times before. 

It was withdrawal. 

He hadn’t drunk a single drop of alcohol in almost twenty-four hours. His body was aching for it, and he was paying the price for making it wait longer than usual.

“Are we still far from the outpost?”

“No, maybe an hour of walk. Less, if we walk fast.”

“Can you?” Maxson sounded concerned. It felt weird, hearing that tone coming from his mouth.

Nate simply nodded, getting himself back together.

It took less than an hour.

The night had fallen, and Arthur could see the lights from the outpost not so far from here.

“They won’t shoot us, right?” He asked, turning his gaze to Nate. 

He looked closely at him, still a bit worried since his reaction earlier. Nate’s face got paler–it really was time for them to rest. He offered him a stimpak earlier, which Nate used but it didn’t seem to have any effect.

“Don’t worry. They probably already know it’s me. They have binoculars, you know.”

“I’m not the raider expert here.”

Nate laughed–it was a good sign, right? If he was about to die, he wouldn’t be laughing. 

Arthur didn’t feel well either. Since the fight, his head was exploding. He had focused on the road not to think about it, but it got more difficult as the minutes passed. The back of his skull felt like it was in the middle of a battle. 

The last steps were like torture.

“Hey! Open the gates! The Overboss is here!” A raider yelled from the surrounding walls.

Before them, the doors opened on an outpost made of an old house and several wood structures around it. It was well guarded. 

Did they fortify before the attack, or did they step up their defenses after? Will Arthur be in danger once they see the BoS insignia on his battlecoat?

“Nate?” A woman's voice raised itself among the noise in the outpost. 

Arthur turned his eyes towards her, just like Nate.

She was a young, blonde woman, wearing what seemed like a classy version of the raiders armors. In her eyes, Arthur could see concern as she got closer to Nate. Was she close to him?

Nate, on the other hand, seemed in shock to see her there.

“Why are you here, Mags?”

Mags. If Arthur remembered correctly, she was the one in charge of the Operators–one of the leaders just below Nate. So they  _ were _ close.

Surprise was drawn on Nate’s face. She was supposed to be in Nuka-World, didn’t she?

“I was on my way to the Murkwater outpost. It got attacked the day after you and Gage left.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 8, yaaay!!  
> A big, BIG thank you to Kara for her help, she's the best beta out there!  
> Thank you guys so much for being here every time, you're the best! Please leave a comment, that would really make my day/night!  
> See you next week for chapter 9 <3


	9. Tougher than a nukalurk high on buffout

Nate turned his head towards Maxson, his green eyes flooded by surprise as if Maxson himself could bring him any explanation. 

But as his gaze met his, Nate only saw a reflection–their reactions were the same.

Their eyes stayed locked and Maxson slowly shook his head–it wasn’t the Brotherhood of Steel’s doing. Nate’s jaw clenched. 

He still wasn’t feeling well.

“How did it happen this time?” Nate asked, looking at Mags.

“A vertibird, just like Hangman’s Alley. Nate, they killed fifteen of us.”

“Fifteen?!” Nate exclaimed. “Were there any casualties on the other side?”

“None. This time, they didn’t make any mistake.”

It took Nate a few seconds to gather his thoughts. He was fighting against keeping his body from falling to the ground.

He sighed, running his left hand across his face. The only things he expected when they would arrive here were to get a drink and find Gage.  _ Gage _ . Nate looked around him, checking his surroundings but saw no sign of him. 

“Is Gage here?”

“No, I was surprised not to see him with you.” Mags said, her voice low. She was the smartest of them all, it wouldn’t take long for her to figure it out.

“Have you seen a Paladin of the Brotherhood?” Maxson asked.

That’s when Mags took the time to study Maxson. Nate turned his gaze on him again–he didn’t seem well either. Both of them had one hell of a rough day.

“No, they better not come around here.” Mags said, a sharp grin across her face. “And who’s that fine piece of man?”

Nate saw Maxson almost choke on his saliva. It made him smile through all his worry concerning Gage’s disappearance. 

“Let me introduce you to the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel, Maxson.” 

Without much surprise, Mags immediately looked at Nate, a look of surprise in her eyes. Her facial features were a dangerous mix of incomprehension and suspicion. Raising her arm to point at Maxson, she clearly couldn’t hide her disdain towards him. 

“What the fuck, Nate? Are you out of your mind bringing him here?!”

Without much thinking, Nate moved himself in front of Maxson, shielding him from Mags’ wrath.

“Mags, stop! It’s not them, it’s not the Brotherhood!”

“What do you mean it’s not them? They were here! They had their uniforms and even a fucking vertibird!”

“It’s not us.” Maxson calmly said behind Nate. 

“Don’t tell me you’re believing him over us.” Mags said, her hand like a weapon that would tear Maxson apart on the first occasion. If looks could kill, Maxson would be ancient history.

“It’s not them. Listen, the journey has been too long and we need to rest. Let’s sit a bit around the fire with some food and drinks, we’ll tell you everything, I promise.” Nate put his fingers on Mags’ arm, forcing her to lower it. It felt as if the world went backward, with him protecting Maxson from his own raiders.

“Fine.” She whispered, standing down. “Where’s Gage?”

Nate’s heart felt like a black hole pumping his hopes instead of blood. His mind was a battlefield a day after combat, when only despair found its way through the trenches. His optimism on finding Gage here was destroyed the moment he didn’t see his stupid face welcoming them. Nate didn’t want to believe him dead. He couldn’t be dead. Nate would feel it, deep inside his chest if he was. His best friend could not be dead. 

“I don’t know.” Nate fought against his own voice not to let it break. Slowly, he pressed his hand on Mags’ back. “C’mon, you have a lot to learn about all of this.”

Arthur couldn’t help but look everywhere around him. He never thought he would one day set foot in a raider base, much less accompanying their leader. Or Overboss, as they called him.

As they sat around the fire, he glanced at Nate. They were alone while Mags had gone looking for everything they needed to restore themselves.

“I didn’t expect you to be so fast on shielding me from her.” Arthur said, getting his hand closer to the fire’s heat.

“C’mon, let’s be serious for a second.” Nate grinned, as usual when he was about to say something he shouldn’t. “If I wanted you dead, I would have already put a bullet in that handsome face of yours.”

“You’re starting to be more and more predictable, raider.” Arthur faintly smiled. How good it felt, to actually have someone acting normal around him–if he could describe Nate’s behavior as  _ normal _ , which he wasn’t sure. All of this felt peculiar.

“Not raider. Nate.”

Arthur’s chest started to heat up. A soft feeling embraced his beating heart. His mind declared the fire as the culprit, a reason he convinced himself to be. 

“Still a raider to me.”

Nate opened his mouth, probably ready to say something even less appropriate, but Mags came back with some pieces of meat to grill and two bottles of what seemed to be vodka. 

Nate immediately opened one, serving a glass and giving it to Arthur. “Here, it’s homemade. The best in the Wasteland.”

Arthur took the glass, not really sure about drinking it–all of his good senses told him not to. Instead, he looked closely at Nate’s fingers as he poured himself a glass. 

They were shaking. 

Was it the result of exhaustion? Maybe fear about the fate of his friend. Their day had been really hard, it wouldn’t be abnormal for him to shake a bit.

Arthur, on the other hand, felt the ache gaining ground in the back of his skull, like a dark cloud threatening a thunder that would wreak his mind. His shoulder hurt him too, with a constant swinging sensation that went harder each time it came back. 

As Nate started to explain their misadventure to Mags, Arthur took upon himself to deal with his pain in silence. Slowly, he pressed his palm against the back of his head, trying to release some pressure but the sole action of moving his opposed arm ignited even more the pain in his shoulder.

From time to time, he could see Mags’ eyes lingering on him. Her gaze was not friendly–in her eyes, he only saw hatred. 

He probably looked at her the same way.

“How can you be so sure they didn’t sabotage their own vertibird?” She asked, looking back at Nate.

Nate’s voice seemed sore from their troubles while he narrated their accident like a storyteller, his hands giving life to his words.

“They would not take the risk of killing their Elder.”

“Nor our best Paladin.” Arthur added, trying his best not to focus on the pain. “Your man Gage isn’t the only one missing. Danse is too. His death would be a great loss to the Brotherhood.”

“So you care more about the Brotherhood itself than your man’s life.” Mags said, gritting her teeth as she looked down on him.

“Mags, please.” Nate slowly whispered before pouring himself another drink. 

Since he started explaining the whole situation, he was drinking more than he ate. Arthur, on the contrary, was already grilling his second radstag steak. He wouldn’t be surprised if his stomach found itself endless.

“I do care about Danse’s life.” Maxson replied in a cutting voice. 

He wasn’t lying. He just wasn’t used to expressing any feeling in front of other people, especially not raiders. 

He had lost men before, but since he officially became Elder, it never happened when he was on a mission with them. He was used to hearing the reports of battles and missions, of soldiers falling while on the field. He didn’t actually see it happen anymore.

Arthur’s reactions towards those losses didn’t feel as heart wrenching as a normal human being, consequences of his heavy responsibilities.

Danse’s fate felt different. His guilt struck him even more in that situation, crawling in his lungs to scour his ability to breath. Every single soldier fallen in action was like a needle puncturing his skin and this one was thicker than others.

“Gage can’t be dead.” Mags said, ignoring Arthur. “He can’t.”

“He’s not. That bastard is tougher than a nukalurk high on buffout.” said Nate.

“And Danse was wearing his power armor.” Arthur added. “They must have crawled somewhere we didn’t find them.”

As he spoke, another bolt of pain ran from his shoulder to his head. Unable to control it, he hissed in pain, frowning as the ache got stronger.

“Hey, are you ok?” Nate asked with a hint of concern in his green eyes.

“It’s my shoulder. The adrenaline is probably wearing off.” He said with difficulty, the pain too high.

Nate quickly stood up, walking towards a shed not so far from the fire then came back with a stimpak in his hand. “Here, and you also need to rest.”

“I’m fine, I can handle it.” Arthur didn’t want to show any weakness in front of all those raiders. He didn’t want to represent so badly the Brotherhood. 

But hell, the pain was atrocious.

“For fuck’s sake, stop acting like a entitled cunt. I can’t have you dying while you’re here. The whole Brotherhood would declare war on us if something happened to you.”

Without giving him the time to respond, Nate put his arm around his waist to get him up.

“I can walk!” Maxson said as he pulled himself from him, but the mere seconds of contact had been enough to bring back that burning feeling in his chest. This time, he couldn’t blame the fire for it. “Where can I sleep?”

“C’mon, I’ll show you. Mags, I’ll be right back, don’t drink all the booze.” Nate smiled at her, before waving at Arthur. “Let’s go, your highness.”

Arthur rolled his eyes, his jaw clenching throughout the pain. As he followed Nate around the outpost, he looked at the raiders around them. Nate didn’t lie when he described the Pack–they really seemed kind of weird. 

They passed by one of them wearing a mask with a beak, and another with a stuffed animal attached to his chest armor. The only thing that came to Arthur’s mind was:  _ What the fuck? _

“Here, you got a bed and a trunk if you wanna store a few things. Like your coat.” Nate smiled as he leaned back on the door frame.

“I’m not letting you come near my coat. It’s very dear to me.” He answered, walking in the room to look around.

“Aw, you’re gonna have to, though. Because it’s my room.”

“Are you fucking serious?” Arthur exclaimed. He was already on his way out of here–he could sleep on the grass near the fire, it would be just fine.

Nate burst in laughter, shaking his head–his eyes were shining. “I’m messing with you, dude. But I gotta admit, you cursing is something I love to provoke.” 

“My fist breaking your nose is the only thing you’re going to provoke.”

“Ouch, touché.” Nate smirked.

“Out, now.”

“I love when you talk to me like that.” His voice was as smooth as velvet. 

It made Arthur shiver and he hated that. He hated him, too–or at least he wanted to. 

“Fine.” Nate added. “I’m letting you have your beauty sleep. Good night, Elder.”

And with a final smile, Nate left the place, walking back to the fire where Mags was still waiting for him.

Arthur slammed the door shut, feeling his chest burning and pounding. Seriously, what was that guy doing to him? He hadn’t felt like that in years–maybe never before. His previous crushes, including the one on Sarah Lyons, didn’t provoke that kind of reaction in him.

But Nate  _ wasn’t _ a crush–he couldn’t be. Not a fucking raider. Not the fucking Overboss of Nuka-World, even with his fucking smiles and fucking eyes.

Arthur wanted to slap himself across the face just to clear his head from those demonic thoughts. 

He sighted as he sat down on the bed, his fingers holding the stimpak. The second after, he buried its needle into his chest, near his shoulder. The immediate soothing effect took over and he allowed himself to lie down on the mattress. 

His head felt less worse in the following seconds but the stimpak’s effect never lasted long enough in that case. However, that small instant was enough for his exhausted body to give up. He fell asleep the next minute.

Nate sat on the grass, this time taking the whole bottle instead of a glass. 

“I’ll never leave without a flask again.” He said, drinking from the bottleneck. 

He already started to feel a bit better with the liquor running through his veins like wildfire. The stimpak he accepted from Maxson earlier was just so he wouldn’t raise any concern about his state but the only thing helping him was alcohol.

“You worry about him. The Elder, I mean.” Mags said, her eyes looking towards the shed where Maxson disappeared.

“I don’t want to.” Nate whispered as if only the bottle could hear him.

“But you do.”

“I shouldn’t, Mags. I shouldn’t give a shit about him, when Gage is somewhere lost, maybe badly injured and waiting for us to find him.”

“Tomorrow I’ll send some men to where you crashed. Maybe you missed something, it’s possible. You almost died.” 

Mags rested her hand on his shoulder, only to bring him into a hug. Nate rested his forehead on her shoulder, closing his eyes as tears rolled down his cheeks. He couldn’t hold it any longer. He battled too much against it today, feeling the biting ache under his cheekbones everytime he thought of Gage.

“I’m scared for him. I’m so fucking scared and I feel helpless.” His voice broke like glass.

Mags put her arms against his back, holding him tighter against her. “We’ll find him. He’s going to be fine, I’m sure of it. You said it yourself, that man is a force of nature. The only thing that can kill Porter Gage is himself.”

Nate faintly smiled, slowly moving away. He wiped his tears with the back of his hand, before taking another sip of the life-saving vodka. 

“He’s gonna kill me when we’ll find him, for leaving him behind.”

“He definitely will.” Mags gently smiled, brushing his shoulder. “And also, because in the meantime, you’re thirsting over the fucking Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel.”

Nate softly laughed, his gaze looking in the direction of the shed. “Well, Gage already said one or two things about that already.”

“You do have a type, my dear Overboss.”

“Oh yeah, what is it?” Nate asked, already knowing the answer.

“Bears. Big, jacked and hairy men. The kind that could break you in half if they wanted to.” Mags chuckled, stealing the bottle from his hands to drink.

“Maybe you’re right.” Nate smiled, already taking the second bottle to open it.

“Remember that guy you shagged on Far Harbor? What was his name again, the Atom crazy guy?”

“Richter. He may believe in all of that Atom bullshit, but damn he was a great fuck.”

“And what did he look like? A fucking bear. I swear, Nate. That yao guai that did that to you,” She ran her fingers on his scar, as if her nails were the claws that made it. “It must have awoken something in you.”

Nate giggled, already feeling better thanks to her. That was Mags’ effect. She always managed to make him laugh through the worst. 

“Don’t try to find anything psychological, I was already having a great time with  _ bears _ before the war.”

Mags laughed, shaking her head to his words. Nate smiled, looking at her with a softness he rarely displayed. “What would I do without you, Mags?”

“You would be dead and rotting in some secluded part of Nuka-World.” She said as she got up, patting his shoulder. “Go to sleep, you had a rough day. Tomorrow, we’ll find Gage.” 

She gently brushed her fingers on his cheek, and left the campfire to gain her bed.

Nate sighed, his eyes focused on the flames. Without anyone around him, it only took a few seconds for his fears to crawl back into his mind. 

He could see Gage, gasping for air as he struggled to breathe–badly injured, in the dark of the night, with no one to aid him. Angst took over his chest like he was in Gage’s place, unable to use his lungs, burned by the crash.

Nate needed to sleep, to shut down his brain for tonight.

He stood up, still holding firmly the bottle of vodka. On his way to his shed, he stumbled on the few stairs–his free hand gripped on the wood wall so he wouldn’t completely fall. The liquor was kicking in much faster than usual, consequences of the withdrawal.

Barely closing the door behind him, Nate took off all of his clothes except his underwear and fell on his bed. 

Drinking himself to sleep, Nate didn’t dream of the war that night.

But of Gage, dying alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's sundaaay, here's chapter 9!  
> It's one of my fav written so far, I hope you guys enjoyed it :)  
> A big thank you to Kara for the best help ever!!  
> Please, don't forget to comment, it really means a lot to know you're liking this story <3


	10. It's tailor-made

Arthur looked around him, checking the comings and goings of the raiders in the outpost.

He had been up since the first lights of the day, woken up by the sun rays coming through the wooden walls. He wasn’t used to it anymore, after sleeping for two whole years in his quarters aboard the Prydwen–light never got through the thick door.

Sitting on the steps of the shed, Arthur was studying the Pack members. They really were different from the raiders he was used to. Those in the Commonwealth almost looked the same but those were wearing colorful pieces of armor, and even their hair was dyed in bright colors. It somehow amused him. 

His days among his soldiers all looked the same. It wasn’t quite like that, but it could be close to some holidays, just like they existed before the war.

It wasn’t all fun and games, however. 

Most of the raiders were giving him hateful glances and Arthur was actually fighting against himself not to beat the shit out of every single one of them.

He knew he had issues with people disrespecting him–a problem taking its roots in his rise to power when he was still a teenager. He always feared the Brotherhood turning its back on him, of losing everything he built his whole life on. Every decision he ever made had always made him anxious about the potential consequences. He couldn’t lose his place as an Elder. It would mean losing everything.

Voices drew him from his thoughts. Arthur recognized Nate’s, and the woman’s who was with them last night. What was her name again? He really had a problem with memorizing those.

Arthur got up, dusting his coat and walked up to them. As he quickly detailed Nate, he noticed he was wearing a t-shirt, but his right arm was covered by an arm sleeve–he was hiding his scar.

“How long have you been up?” Nate asked, as he kept walking.

“Since dawn.” Arthur replied, following him and the other raider. “Let’s go, show me what you got left from the attack.”

He waited long enough. It was supposed to be a simple trip, barely taking a few hours, but they had left the Boston airport more than 24 hours ago. A team was probably on its way to find them. He needed to get back to the Prydwen as soon as possible.

“Yeah, Mags gonna show us. Just follow the nice lady.”

“I won’t be nice to him.” She said, not giving Arthur a single look.

It made Arthur grit his teeth. He wanted to be out of here–to be back among his soldiers of the Brotherhood. He had enough of those raiders, as entertaining as they were. 

“C’mon, Mags! He’s cool! Could someone wearing a coat like that be a cunt? I don’t think so.” Nate said, smiling as they kept walking towards a shed a bit further away from the epicenter of the outpost.

“Shut it, Nate. You’re thinking with your cock, not your brain.”

Arthur stopped walking, shock all over his face. Did he hear that right? Beside the obvious meaning here, was she  _ really  _ talking to her Overboss like  _ that _ ? 

“You good?” Nate asked, after he noticed Arthur had stopped following them. “Promise, I’m thinking more with my brain than my dick.”

“How can you let someone under your command speak to you like that?” He whispered a bit too loudly.

“She’s not only someone under my command, she’s my friend. But I get the impression that you don’t have much of those.” His voice wasn’t mocking. 

He actually seemed sorry about him. And he was right, Arthur had no friends–not a single person to talk to, or even laugh with. Sure, he sometimes joked around with Kells or Danse, but it was barely anything. 

“I can’t make friends with my officers and soldiers. It goes against the idea of hierarchy.”

Nate was now walking next to him, Mags alone in front of them. 

Nate sighed. “That’s what you think, but it’s not the case. Everyone around here, everyone in Nuka-World, they respect me. They obey me. But it doesn’t stop myself from being among them. I’m their leader, not someone who thinks himself better than them.”

“I don’t think I’m better than them.” Arthur said in a low voice.

“Then let them in.” Nate finally said, as Mags opened the shed’s door. “C’mon, let’s see if your shit was stolen.”

“Speak better of our equipment. You would dream of having it.”

“I already told you I wanted that coat. Is it mass-produced?” Nate asked, eying it.

“Sorry, raider. It’s tailor-made.” Arthur replied with a grin.

“Are you two fashion models done?” Mags sighed with her arms crossed.

Nate giggled at her words, but he knew how much she hated to see Maxson here. 

Earlier this morning, when she woke him up, she had bags under her eyes. Gage’s disappearance had kept her awake. She told him, as he was drinking his morning wine, about how she couldn’t keep Gage away from her thoughts–the mere idea of picturing him dead enough to wreak her heart. 

Nate would have never thought it would affect her this much. Mags and Gage always had been like oil and water. When he became Overboss, making these two properly work together had been one of the worst efforts.

But seeing her worrying this much only made him even more scared. 

All night long, he dreamt. His nightmares were fueled by the sight of his best friend mortally wounded , as if Nate could feel Gage’s pain. The aching was still there this morning. 

The hangover didn’t help either, but he was doing his best to hide it from Maxson. 

Nate didn’t need his scolding right now.

Instead, he focused on the task. Opening a trunk full of what the attackers had left, he gestured to Maxson. 

“It’s all here. Tell me, is that yours?”

Nate took a step back, leaning against the wall as he watched over the scene. With precaution, Maxson detailed every item he took in his hands. First, it was a piece of fabric. The orange color reminded Nate of Paladin Danse’s uniform. 

A few seconds later, Maxson was looking at an item familiar to Nate. Holotags, like those he had when he was still in the army. 

Feeling a weight growing in his chest, Nate looked away. Every single detail from his old life could be enough to mess with his mind. 

“This can really help us. I’ll have them check when I’ll be back aboard the Prydwen, to see if it belongs to someone in the Brotherhood, or if it’s fake.” Maxson said, putting the holotags in his pocket. 

Coming from the market center of the outpost, a Pack member knocked on the wood wall. In his hand was a bigger piece of a uniform. 

“Sorry to bother, Overboss. But I found those yesterday and forgot to put them in the trunk.”

Taking a few steps out of the shed, Nate nodded towards Maxson. “Thanks, you can give it directly to the Elder.” He had no use for it. He didn’t know the Brotherhood beyond the simple facts.

The raider shook his head, spitting on the ground. “I’m not talking to that cunt.”

Before Nate could even get the words to his brain, Maxson came out of the shed, his facial features twitching. 

“What did you just say?”

The Pack member, throwing the uniform on the ground, got closer to him. 

“Did you hear me wrong? I’m not talking to you.” Around them, the other raiders were already coming to see what was going on.

“Oh I heard that, and what you said right after, if only you had the balls to say it again.” Maxson’s eyes could kill–his whole body was like an engine ready to explode from too much steam.

“Hey, hey, calm the fuck down!” Nate yelled, forcing himself between the two men. With his hand on the raider’s chest, he slowly made him take a few step backs. “I know we hate the Brotherhood, that we thought they were responsible for the attacks but they’re not, I assure you! If Elder Maxson is here, it’s because he’s threatened as much as we are by those people.”

“We don’t trust him, nor his kind!” Said a raider among the crowd, followed by other voices.

“I know! It’s totally understandable. But for now, he’s an ally and I will take responsibility for his actions, or the Brotherhood’s.” Nate said, watching his raiders one by one. “I’m not asking you to trust him, but to trust  _ me _ .”

A heavy silence followed. 

In his chest, Nate’s heart was racing. He couldn’t lose the support of his crew. Not over Maxson. As much as he trusted the guy’s words, his raiders came first.

“Fine.” Said the first raider, taking the uniform back in his head only to throw it to Maxson. “Here, good luck proving to us it’s not your doing.”

“I have nothing to prove to you. I want to know who’s behind this as much as you do, even more. This is the Brotherhood’s reputation which is at stake here.”

“What reputation?” Mags walked into the scene. “You should leave your airship more often, Elder. The Commonwealth despises you.”

And without much more words, most of the raiders went back to their activities, leaving Nate and Maxson alone.

Arthur wanted to leave this place. 

To forget everything and every single raider he laid his eyes on. Even Nate, who turned his head towards him. 

“I’m sorry. They don’t have all the information you gave me.”

“I just wanna clear this out as soon as possible and go back to the Prydwen.” Arthur said, clearing his throat. “However, thank you for having my back here.”

“That’s for saving my ass with that yao guai yesterday.” Nate gently smiled.

It made Arthur’s heart skip a beat, like every damn time Nate smiled. He  _ really _ needed to get back to the Prydwen.

“Well, like you said. Something happens to me, the Brotherhood comes after you. So I guess that if something happens to you, Nuka-World will come after me.” He said, unable to restrain a small laughter.

“You learn fast, Elder. If you keep listening to all I say, maybe I can make a proper raider out of you.”

“Yeah, in your dreams.”

“You do other things in my dreams.”

“Alright, I’m done with you. Go somewhere else while I inspect this uniform.” Arthur shook his head, gesturing for him to leave.

Nate’s laugh as he left didn’t make it easier for his heart, nor his burning cheeks under his beard.

Nate had just finished fixing Overseer’s Guardian scope when he heard the knock on the door.

It was Maxson, still holding the torn fabric of the uniform. “I’m pretty sure it’s a real one.”

“Shit.” Nate whispered, coming over Maxson to feel the cloth between his fingers. “So what’s your theory?” He trusted him. He really did, beyond his own understanding. 

But Maxson had proven himself worthy of his trust in the last two days and it made Nate quite delighted to see he could eventually appreciate the guy beyond his look.

“I don’t wanna believe in any potential betrayal among the ranks. This must have been stolen from a fallen soldier, same with the holotags. We will have a clear answer once I’ll know who they belong to.”

“I hope we’ll know what’s really going on.” Nate whispered, raising his eyes to meet Maxson’s. “Murkwater, the outpost that got attacked a few days ago, is only like less than two hours from here. We should check it out before heading to Hangman’s Alley.”

Maxson nodded, not forcing his eyes away from Nate’s. Nate felt his body temperature rising. It was kind of usual to him, to want a guy without thinking of the consequences or the aftermath. Hell, almost all of his relationships only lasted a night or a bit more if it was good.

But Maxson, that prick leader of the Brotherhood was taking so much space in his head he actually felt bad–it was less thoughts towards what and who really mattered and mostly Gage. 

Earlier today, Mags had sent the operators who traveled with her and members of the Pack to the crashing site. Since their departure, Nate had been feeling bad–he was actually drinking when he was fixing his rifle, thinking again about Gage’s state, wherever he was. 

He felt like shit for not going back there himself, but Mags had told him that he was more useful dealing with the Brotherhood and she was right. 

Even if his horny thoughts weren’t helping him think straight.

“Fine, do you have everything you need? I’m also gonna give you what’s necessary to camp. It’s near Diamond City, so we’re gonna walk a lot.” Nate said, finally taking a step back from Maxson’s gaze.

“Thank you. It would have been easier with a vertibird.”

“I’m not getting into one of those things ever again.” Nate laughed as they walked out of the room.

Murkwater didn’t bring much more information. 

This attack had been precise, clean and fast. They barely left anything but desolation. The raiders here, all of them being Operators, were even less welcoming to Maxson.

Once again, Nate had to speak for him, defend him from his raiders. They didn’t stay long–two hours later, they were already set to get back on the road.

“Mags?” Nate asked her as she was checking her ammunition stock. “I need you back in Nuka-World.”

“What? No, I’m not leaving you with him.” She said, not giving a shit if Maxson could hear her. “I don’t trust him.”

“I know, but we can’t leave Mason dealing with the whole park alone. He’s a good raider, he’s loyal, but I don’t wanna have a fucking zoo all over Nuka-World when I return. Plus, when they’ll find Gage, they’ll bring him there.”

Mags sighted, nodding to his words. “Fine, I’ll go back home. But you stay safe, alright pretty boy? We’re doomed without you.”

“I’ll be fine. Plus, hottie over there is a real life saver.” Nate giggled, as his green eyes looked towards Maxson–he was cleaning his Gatling laser, focused on his task and ignoring everything around him.

“Don’t get too distracted, Nate. Focus on the mission, not his ass.”

“Will do. I promise. You know me, I joke around, but I’m serious in the end.” He said, bringing her into a hug. “Stay safe too, blondie. Get home in one piece.”

“I will.” She said as she stepped back. Getting up on her tiptoe, she kissed his scared cheek. “See you there.”

Nate hugged her once again, before taking his bag and his rifle. One last smile, and he turned his heels, walking over Maxson. “Ready to go?”

Maxson raised his head, checking Nate and noticing they were alone. “She’s not coming?”

“No, Mags will be in Nuka-World in case Gage gets there, or if something happens while I’m gone.”

“Shit, it’s just you and me, then. Who's gonna kill the other first?” Maxson asked, smiling as he got up, ready to leave.

“Probably you, killing me.” Nate shrugged.

The second after, they were back on the road. Just the two of them, facing the Commonwealth and its dangers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sunday means new chapter, yaaay!  
> A big thank you to Kara for helping me out, you're the best!  
> I hope you guys enjoyed this, thanks a lot for the comments and the kudos! <3


	11. The freezer cheat

Nate closed his fingers tighter around his rifle. Gunners plaza wasn’t far, and once again they had to go around it to avoid any useless fight. He repaired his rifle's scope at the outpost and got more ammunition, but they had no need in wasting them now. 

“This zone is filled with gunners. Not so far from here, there’s what’s left of Quincy.” Nate whispered as they sneaked through the area.

“I heard of the massacre. Are they still holding the position?” Maxson asked, following him carefully.

Nate nodded, looking around them. “I think we’re good for now. We got far enough.”

They left their path hidden in the bushes to get to the road, more practicable for their feet. Far away, on the horizon, they could see the skyscrapers of Boston. Nate remembered how he used to go to the city, before the war. When it was still full of life and people, not decay and death all around.

“Quincy.” Maxson said, bringing him back to Earth. “It could have been the end of the Minutemen, but apparently they’re growing larger each day.”

“They’re delusional. No way they can regain the force they had in the past. They’re just a small group managing to stay alive.”

“You’ve met them?” Maxson asked as he looked at him.

“Yup, two days after I got out of the vault.” Nate answered, meeting his gaze. “They were stuck in a museum in Concord, a small-town west of here. The last five Minutemen. I saved them, not really knowing what I was doing. I was just so fucking lost.”

“Wait, wait. So you, a random vault-dweller, saved the last remaining Minutemen?” Maxson asked, surprise flooding his voice.

“From raiders! The fucking irony.” Nate laughed, turning his head and focusing on the road.

“So, how was it, getting out of the vault? How did you manage to do that on your own?”

“You’re very curious today.” Nate smiled.

“Just trying to make conversation, it’s gonna be a long road.”

“Yeah, sure.” Nate actually liked that–he didn’t want all those efforts to end up forgotten once they’ll find the answers to their mutual problem, and deep inside, he kind of hoped for a more lasting alliance. With the Brotherhood on their side, he could strengthen his raider empire in the Commonwealth.

But Nate wasn’t dumb. He knew that their factions were totally opposite. Behind their fight against all non-human creatures, the BoS were protecting the people of the Commonwealth. What he was hoping for would probably be impossible; one day or another, one of them would turn on the other.

“I woke up in the freezer the first time.” Nate said, remembering this hurtful memory. “I saw my friend Nora get murdered and her son Shaun taken away. I couldn’t do anything, I was stuck in the pod, and a few seconds after that, I was put back to cryo sleep.”

“Wow, wait. Who did that? Why? Have you found the child?” Maxson asked like he was in a hurry to get all the answers, his blue eyes still locked on him.

“I have no idea. When I got out, I first tried to find him, but I had no clue. I don’t even know when that happened. For all I know, he might have been dead for a long time already. Maybe you weren’t even born when he got kidnapped.”

The first few months after his escape from the vault, Nate had put so much effort into finding even the smallest clue about Shaun’s fate. He went to Diamond City, hoping to get help. There, he met a synth detective, Nick Valentine, but his memory was already too fucked up because of the alcohol abuse–the only thing he remembered properly was the deafening noise of the gunshot and Shaun’s cries. No face. No voice. Nothing. As much as Valentine tried to help him, Nate couldn’t remember enough for the detective to investigate. 

“When I got to Nuka-World and became Overboss, I gave up.” He finally sighed. He felt bad. He really did. Nora would kill him if she was still alive. She would have moved fucking mountains to have her son back. “I got caught up by all this new world. I just convinced myself that he was dead and I couldn’t do anything about it.”

“Tough call. I don’t judge, I can’t understand what you’ve been through.” Maxson said, finally getting his eyes back on the road. “But if you ever want to start searching for him again, our scribes could try to help you.”

Nate laughed, a strange reaction for his sudden shock.  _ What was Maxson on? _

Nate shook his head. “Not sure it’s a good idea to help me. The Brotherhood won’t really appreciate it if you use its resources for a raider.” 

But the truth was, he was actually touched by this offer. The few days they had spent together started to really change his views on Maxson–not much on the whole Brotherhood side, however. He still saw them, like Gage would say, as just a bunch of organized and legitimized raiders. Something he couldn’t say out loud, unless he wanted to piss off Maxson. For real, this time.

“Well, you’re helping us now. Even if you were the one to come to us first.” Maxson laughed.

It made Nate smile. His heart beat a bit faster, too.

“Yeah, I wanted to slap you across the face so much when we met.”

“Oh, you too?” Maxson asked, a grin on his lips.

Nate laughed, shaking his head. Of course, Maxson had wanted to slap him. Ten minutes after meeting, Nate had already questioned his authority on his soldiers.

“Glad to see we’re getting better.” Nate said, his green eyes detailing Maxson’s facial features. 

Nate could really see himself running his own lips on Maxson’s scars and skin.  _ God _ , the more he looked at him, the more he was convincing himself that Maxson was the most handsome man he ever laid his gaze on.

And the guy was the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel. Lady Luck really threw him a huge ‘Fuck You’.

Maxson caught a glance at him, smiling as he noticed that Nate was still observing him. “Are you gonna stop staring at me?”

“It’s your genes fault.” Nate replied in an amused tone.

“What?” He frowned. 

_ Jesus _ , Nate thought. Maxson  _ really _ wasn’t used to all of that. “It means you’re hot, Maxson. You have good genes.” Nate chuckled.

“Oh, right. Well, thank you.” He said, quickly looking away.

Before turning his eyes back on the road, Nate thought he caught a glimpse of some redness on his cheeks under his beard.

He liked that.

They spent the whole day moving and talking about various stuff.

Arthur finally explained to Nate how the Prydwen could fly, with the best knowledge he had on it. 

The sun had set an hour ago, when they bypassed West Roxbury and its streets filled with Super Mutants. They needed a place to sleep–they couldn’t keep going for much longer in the dark. The nights of the Commonwealth weren’t as welcoming as the days (if they could even be described as such).

“How about there?” Arthur said, pointing his finger to an abandoned house.

The place seemed to be the home of a family before the war, with its swing in the garden and the dog house in front of the main door.

“Yeah, let’s see if it’s not already occupied by ferals.” Nate replied, holding his rifle in a combat position. 

Slowly, Nate got close to the house, opening the door with his foot, his eyes fixed in his weapon’s scope. Behind him, Arthur held tight on his Gatling laser–it wasn’t really appropriate in a potential close combat.

“I’m going upstairs, you check the kitchen and all?” Nate whispered.

Arthur nodded, already marching to the next room. He walked into a crumbled bathroom, with nothing left but a destroyed bathtub. He slowly walked back into the living room to reach the kitchen. With a steady footing, he watched for any kind of threat. Nothing was there.

Suddenly, he heard Nate cursing loudly followed by a trembling shock on the ceiling. Without thinking, Arthur rushed to the stairs, already spinning up his Gatling laser. 

“Hey what’s happening?!” He yelled as he walked the last steps.

At the end of the corridor, there was Nate, stomping on what seemed to be now a radroach soup glued to his boots. Arthur couldn’t help but to chuckle to this wonderful sight–his laugh caught Nate’s attention.

“What? I fucking hate insects. In my day, they at least used to be small!” He said, rubbing his boots on the floor to get rid of what was left of the radroach.

“ _ In my day _ ? Nice way to speak, old man.” Arthur laughed as he went into the room on the left. It was a bedroom with a destroyed bedframe and a dresser full of dust.

“You would dream of being this good-looking at my age.” Nate said, also getting in the room. 

“Quit your bullshit, you used the freezer cheat.” Arthur smiled, walking around the place. “This should do it. We need to barricade all the entrances and even this room.”

“Still older than you, kiddo.” Nate walked back into the corridor. “I’m gonna move some furniture to block the front door.”

“Good, I’ll check the drawers and all, we might get something useful.”

Nate nodded before going back downstairs. 

Arthur only found a few caps and an old bottle of bourbon. 

When Nate went back upstairs, Arthur showed him his findings. “Do you need caps or your raiding activities are enough to make you rich?”

“Six caps won’t change my life, but this,” Nate said as he gently took the bottle from Arthur’s hand. “This is a 2063  _ Old Appalachia _ bourbon. A very good year and a very good pick for our first date.”

“I’m going to sleep in the dog house.” Arthur said in a jaded voice, as if the simple thought of spending the night in Nate’s company didn’t make his chest heat up.

“You can’t, I’ve barricaded the doors.”

“Yes, from the inside. And we’re inside.”

“Hey, I never said I was extremely smart.” Nate giggled and opened the bottle. “Oh, I love that smell.”

He sat cross-legged on the floor, putting the bottle next to him. He then opened his duffle bag and got a package out. “You hungry? I got us some nice smoked mirelurk.”

“Damn straight I am after walking all day long.” Arthur said as he sat down not far from him.

“Here, help yourself.” Nate gave him the package and their fingers brushed. Arthur felt an electrical feeling though in veins–his heart seemed to swell suddenly in his chest.

Arthur thanked him, already missing the softness of his skin when Nate grabbed the bottle of bourbon. 

“Do you mind if we drink from the bottle, or should I go check if there are glasses somewhere?”

“I found none when I was looking around. It’s fine, it’s not like you’re a ghoul or worse.”

“What’s worse than a ghoul to you?” Nate asked before sipping the liquor, his green eyes watching him.

“A synth.” Arthur replied, eating the meat with his back rested against the wall.

“You got any leads on the Institute? I heard that the Brotherhood made its priority to find those fuckers.”

“What proves to me that you’re not a synth yourself, spying on us?” Arthur grinned.

Maxson’s smile was like a bloody weapon. Nate felt his heart beating faster the more he saw it. 

Why did he have to be like that? Why did he have to be gorgeous  _ and _ likeable? Nate sighed with laughter. Imitating Maxson, he leaned his back against the wall, his head turned in his direction.

“I’m too flawed to be a product of the Institute.” Nate said, grabbing a piece of smoked mirelurk to eat it.

He then extended his arm toward Maxson, offering him the bottle. “You want some?”

Maxson nodded, taking the bourbon and brushing Nate’s fingers at the same time.  _ Did he do that on purpose? _ No, it was all in Nate’s head–he didn’t want to raise his hopes up, and especially not expect anything from Maxson. It would only bring disappointment to his fast-beating heart.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you anything.” Maxson said with what sounded like a real apology. 

“It’s fair, I understand. We can’t be too careful with synths.”

Nate’s eyes were watching Maxson as he drank from the bottle. He faintly smiled, eating. “How old are you?”

Maxson grinned and he put the bottle back on the floor–it didn’t stay there long, however, with Nate already grabbing it to drink again.

“How old do you think I am? People are always kind of confused.”

“Your face is aged up by the scars and the beard. But it does seem young underneath. Same thing with your eyes. I see youth behind the veil of responsibilities.”

“You sound like a poet. Not really  _ rairderly _ of you.”

Nate giggled before drinking again. The liquor appeased his needing body, but he was also trying to get a bit drunk for the night. He didn’t want to dream. He didn’t want Maxson to be a witness to that, either. He only dreaded the potential flood of questions tomorrow morning.

“I’m actually a poetry fan. I really like this French one, Apollinaire.” Nate said, reminding himself of that old book he was taking everywhere with him when he was still in the army. “But it’s not the topic here. Sooo, I’d say you’re around 25, like me.”

“Close. I’m 22.” Maxson smiled, taking the bottle from his fingers again, this time without them brushing.

“Shit, 22 and look at you, Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel already.” Nate smiled at him, his eyes getting a bit shiny from the alcohol.

“I’m kind of a prodigy. I was the first in my  _ How to be an Elder _ class.” Maxson said in a serious tone, before bursting in laughter. 

It didn’t take Nate more than a second to laugh with him. They were so tired from their day that the simplest idiotic sentence was enough to bring them to tears of laughter.

Nate wiped his tears with the back of his hand. “Tell me, then. How did you actually become Elder?” He asked, the bottle near his full lips already.

Arthur sighed, watching the barricaded door in front of them. His appointment as Elder happened so fast, when he thought about it, and he didn’t have much choice in it.

He loved his role, he loved his responsibilities but it was sometimes suffocating for a young man like him.

“When I was fifteen, I killed this Super Mutant. He was like a warlord, you see. He was trying to bring all of his kind from the Capital’s Wasteland under his banner, and he was good at it. He was too much of a threat and I managed to eliminate him.”

“Shit, man. You really are a prodigy.” Nate said, actually astonished by his words.

“Yeah well the West Coast Brotherhood, where the strings were pulled, took this as a sign that I was ready.”

“Ready to be a leader?” 

“To be a true Maxson and thus, an Elder, yes.” He took a sip of bourbon before Nate snatched the bottle again. “The deal was sealed when I managed the year after to break peace with the Outcasts, a rogue group of the Brotherhood. I was appointed Elder of the East Coast Brotherhood not long after that.”

“A true diplomat I’m drinking with.” Nate giggled, holding the bottle against his chest. “And you were sixteen. That’s just crazy.”

“Yeah, all of my life is kind of crazy.” Arthur whispered, lowering his eyes. “When you’re being told since childhood that _your_ _soul was forged from eternal steel_ and that your ancestors are looking at you, you don’t really have a normal way of growing up.”

It was actually the first time Arthur voiced his thoughts on all of this. Never before he took the time to bother someone with all of that. He didn’t trust anyone, either. But Nate…

Nate was different. He wasn’t part of the Brotherhood, and he told him already so much from his own life and memories. Arthur only wanted to tell him everything. To finally get all of this off his chest. His  _ burning _ chest, as the raider kept looking at him.

Slowly, Arthur turned his head in his direction. From the faint light of the moon outside, he could barely see the green in his eyes but he could clearly guess the expression in Nate’s gaze.  _ Compassion _ .

“That’s a lot of responsibilities they put on a teenager.” Nate said in a low voice. “Were you the only Elder in the East Coast?”

“Yes, and I still am. Everyone on the Prydwen and back in the Citadel is under my command.”

“Don’t you wanna drop everything sometimes?”

“I do.” Arthur said, without even thinking. The truth couldn’t be held against the effects of the liquor, or maybe his heart being too heavy for years. “But only for a short period of time. I’d miss it, to be honest. I love what I do, I love leading my soldiers. But it’s exhausting.”

“You got some holidays with me.” Nate gently laughed.

Arthur’s mouth curled up in a smile, as they were still looking at each other, their head against the dusty wall. “I’m sorry if sometimes I act like I’m uptight or else. I’ve only known the Brotherhood and I’m bad with people.”

“I like you, though.” Nate whispered.

Arthur felt his whole body suddenly heating up, and not only his chest–in his abdomen, a vivid sensation rose; something nice, something pleasant. Yet, he didn’t take his gaze away from Nate’s. 

“You like my looks.” He said slowly.

“No, no. I like the guy.” Nate softly smiled. “You have a good heart. You wanna do good for everyone around you. I respect that. I couldn’t say as much for myself.”

“C’mon, I saw you with your raiders. You do what’s best for them.”

“For them, yes. But I’m definitely not a saint for the people outside of my crew.” He chuckled before sipping some bourbon. “Anyway, I really appreciate that you trusted me with this.”

“I hope you won’t let your raider’s ways take advantage of all I said.” Arthur laughed, feeling the liquor inhibiting him more each second.

“Promise I won’t.” Nate murmured in a smile. “Alright, Elder. Time to bed. We got a long trip tomorrow.”

Nate moved slowly in his sleeping bag.

There were some flashes in his head. His mind mixing up the war and his new life. He saw Mason freezing on the Alaskan soil. He could hear Mags calling for him in the military hospital–and he felt Gage’s hand on his burned skin.  _ Now I’m just like you, boss. Scorched by a war we didn’t choose _ .

Nate suddenly opened his eyes, breathing with difficulty. 

It took him a few seconds to gather his thoughts as he sat up. Turning his head to his left, he saw Maxson asleep in his own sleeping bag. Suddenly flooding in his brain came the memories of the night, and the days before.

Gage, he was still missing. The next few days would be dreadful, as he’ll wait for a word from Mags when she’ll finally be back in Nuka-World. 

Nate could have even been capable of praying to a God he didn’t believe in, only if it could bring him good news about Gage.

Sighing, he took the almost empty bottle of bourbon and chugged it down before getting back to sleep, this time without nightmares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday update!  
> A big thank you to Kara for helping me out with this <3
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, it goes more into the depths of the characters and I really enjoyed writing it!  
> Please, do not hesitate to leave a comment, it's making my day every time you do <3


	12. Killer noodles

“Rise and shine, raider.” Arthur said, already up and checking out their surroundings through the windows glass.

Nate growled, fighting to sit up in his sleeping bag. “I was dreaming that we were eating a very nice breakfast in a five-star hotel. The bed was really comfy.”

“Yeah, won’t happen. Like, ever.” Arthur shook his head as he went back to his sleeping bag to properly roll it.

“Well, I can draw stars on the door.”

“I’ll never get in the same bed as you.” But Arthur couldn’t help to chuckle while he spoke–Nate always had a funny answer to whatever he could say and he genuinely liked that.

“You’re not funny, Maxson.” 

Nate got up, stretching slowly, still wearing his arm sleeve. He kept it on since they left the outpost, not even taking it off to sleep. What had happened for him to keep wearing it all the time? Why did he feel the need to hide his burned skin? Arthur wanted so badly to ask him but he didn’t want to make Nate uncomfortable. They’ve only met a few days ago and even if they already shared some deep conversations, it didn’t feel right. Not yet.

“What can I say?” Arthur smiled. “I’m just as boring as you probably expected me to be.”

“To be fully honest with you, I expected to see a lot more than your funny side.” Nate replied, winking at him.

_ Fuck, he really should stop doing stuff like that, _ Arthur thought to himself as he felt his heart jumping. How could Nate affect him so much in such a short period of time? He felt like he was a fucking teenager again, getting flustered by a simple look from someone hot. 

And there it was, his mind finally stating the obvious: Nate was hot. 

Arthur couldn’t ignore the truth much longer, considering they would spend at least another day together–to his own fear.

“Yeah, same. When I heard that some raider was ruling over a theme park, I did not expect someone reading French poetry.”

“Aaaw, you remembered!” Nate said while putting all of his stuff back in his bag.

“You told me that last night. I’m not that senile.” Arthur laughed, taking the barricades off the door.

“For now.” Nate replied as they walked out of the house.

Nate was telling Maxson about the unique Nuka-World’s fauna when he heard Maxson wincing in what he thought to be pain.

“You good?” He asked, stopping his footing.

They had left the house about two hours ago, in which Maxson didn’t talk much. Nate didn’t even really notice it until now–he kind of felt bad about that. Was he really that self-centered? 

Maxson shook his head, putting his palm against the back of his head. 

“My head hurts.” He sighed.

Quickly, Nate browsed his pockets to offer him a stimpak. “Here, take it. You can’t stay in pain. Do you wanna stop for a moment?”

Worry flooded Nate’s mind, his eyes inspecting every detail of Maxson’s face, reading the pain in his features. His voice probably betrayed it, but he could care less. They were stuck in a situation where they had to work together, Nate couldn’t simply just ignore what Maxson could be going through. Something had changed, starting to emerge in these past few hours; a mutual respect, and something else, where this uncommon trust found its roots.

“Thanks, but we gotta keep moving.” Maxson took the stimpak, his gesture precise as he injected it in his chest.

“You’re sure of that? It won’t take parts of your manhood away, you know.”

Maxson laughed, and immediately winced again. “Don’t make me laugh, idiot. Or at least wait for the stimpak to work.”

“Sorry.” Nate giggled as they started walking again. “It’s not the first time you got a headache like that.”

Nate remembered when they arrived at Somerville Place two days ago, and how Maxson went early to bed, his fatigue as an excuse. Was it common for him? Was he frequently in pain like that?

“It’s nothing serious.” Maxson finally answered. “Must be the rads or something like that. My body has been used to the inside of the Prydwen since the last two years.”

Nate didn’t believe him but he didn’t say anything. Maxson clearly did not want to talk about it or even explain the reason for his pain. Maybe later. Maybe never. Nate wouldn’t force him to admit anything. 

He knew too much how it felt. 

When he came back injured from the army, everyone around him kept asking details and such, with no respect for boundaries. That actually was one of the main reasons why he left Austin for the Boston area.

“Have you ever been to DC?” Nate asked, changing the subject so Maxson wouldn’t feel obliged to talk about his condition–the stadium and the Green Jewel of the Commonwealth was getting closer to them after each step.

“I told you I grew up in DC, you’re the senile one!” Maxson chuckled, his blue eyes shining as he looked at him.

Nate felt his whole body tensing as their eyes met, incapable of stopping himself as he softly bit his lip. His laugh, his eyes, his face, his body, his voice… Everything about Maxson could start a sudden heat in his chest and his abdomen. The fact that they got along so well clearly didn’t help Nate with how he felt around him.

Nate smiled with a husky laugh.  _ Shit, he couldn’t get horny now. _ “No, not the Citadel and all. I mean Diamond City. We’re not so far from it.”

They got into Boston about twenty minutes ago, holding tight on their weapons. The remains of the city were filled with low-cost raiders and super mutants. They still had quite the walk before they would reach Hangman’s Alley.

“Oh, right. No, I haven’t. But I heard a lot about it.”

“Wanna check it out after we’re done at the outpost? They got killer noodles.”

Nate could already picture himself sitting next to Maxson at Takahashi’s stand, just the two of them eating noodles and having a well-deserved rest to chill for a bit–and probably messing with Maxson by calling it a date.

“I’d love to, but I need to get back to the Prydwen once we’re done.” Maxson’s reply quickly burned down the picture in Nate’s mind. “They probably already sent soldiers to find me. It was supposed to take us a day at most.”

As much as he wanted to spend more time with him, Nate could only agree with Maxson. He also needed to get back to Nuka-World as soon as possible once they’ll have some answers, to check if Gage had been found. 

The nightmares from the night before came back to his mind. His best friend was somewhere, waiting for him. He couldn’t just stay with Maxson and play the charmer.

“Another time, then.” Nate said with his usual grin.

“You wanna see me again, raider? Watch out, I might persuade you to join the Brotherhood.”

“You have higher chances of persuading me to join your bedroom, Elder.”

Maxson burst in laughter, hitting him in the biceps with his own arm. The gesture made Nate lose some of his balance and his cheeks redden a bit.

“Shut it with your dirty thoughts about me.” Arthur shook his head, still smiling.

“I’ll try but I can’t make any promises.” Nate answered, looking away so his burning cheeks could rest.

The night started to fall when they arrived near the outpost. 

They had been silent most of the time, trying to sneak in between the buildings so they wouldn’t get themselves into an useless fight. 

But as they got closer to Hangman’s Alley, Arthur caught a glimpse of a small group not so far from its walls. In the early moments of the night, it took him a few seconds to realize that it was the Brotherhood of Steel.

“Is that your crew?” Nate asked as he tried to get a better view in the dark.

“It is!” Arthur replied with a smile on his face. 

Finally, days after the crashing of their vertibird, they came across a patrol, in which he could actually recognize some familiar faces. Relief felt like an explosion in Arthur’s head, his body feeling an immediate rest just by the look of his men.

Arthur started to walk faster towards them but abruptly felt something holding him back–or someone _. _

Nate had caught his wrist, his graceful fingers gently pressed around it. 

“Wait!” He whispered. “Are you sure they’re members of the BoS? Remember how the attacks on the outposts went.”

Arthur raised his gaze from Nate’s hand to his green eyes and it felt obvious that he couldn’t be able to hide the worry in them even if he wanted to. Was Nate really  _ that _ concerned about him?  _ No, _ Arthur thought to himself,  _ he’s only trying to avoid any open conflict _ .

But the first idea had a clear effect on his heart, as if the feeling of Nate’s fingers on his uniform’s fabric wasn’t enough already.

“I know some of them. It’s fine.”

“Then, they’re here looking for you.” Nate whispered as he let go of him. “Looks like we’re right on time to stop a blood bath.”

“Come on.” Arthur gestured at Nate to follow him.

As they got closer to the group, Paladin Jameson took his power armor helmet off. 

“Elder Maxson it’s you! We’ve been looking for you!” He said in a very fast way, before clearing his throat and standing straight. “My apologies, Elder. This is no way to greet you. Ad Victoriam!” 

The other members of the squad quickly followed their officer, saluting Arthur with a vivid passion. It always filled Arthur’s heart with pride, seeing how his soldiers were involved in the cause.

“Ad Victoriam, brothers and sisters.” Arthur said with a small smile on his lips.

The initial merry faded, and one of the BoS members noticed Nate’s presence behind Arthur. Quickly drawing his rifle, the knight aimed at Nate. 

“Do you want me to take down that raider, Elder? You’re safe now!”

“Lower your fucking gun, baldie.” Nate’s tone was calm but his hands tightened on Overseer’s Guardian.

“Easy, easy!” Arthur interjected, his hands raised. “No one is shooting anyone. This is the Nuka-World Overboss, he can be trusted.”

The words felt weird in his mouth. Him, Elder of the East Coast Brotherhood of Steel, calling a raider an ally. 

But in the past few days, Nate had clearly earned his trust and respect.

“What’s your name, Knight?” Arthur asked the bald one who lowered his rifle.

“Knight Rhys, at your command, Elder.”

The name suddenly revived his memory. He had already met the guy–he was part of the squadron led by Danse before the Prydwen arrived in the Commonwealth.  _ Danse, was he even still alive?  _ Arthur thought about him a lot on the way, probably fueling his headaches even more with his worry acting like gasoline.

“Have you heard any report on Paladin Danse’s status, or a raider with an eye patch called Gage?” Arthur asked, before meeting Nate’s gaze. 

Even if they didn’t talk much about it, he knew how worried Nate was for his second in command. He sometimes noticed how Nate seemed suddenly absent, lost in his thoughts. Arthur didn’t need to know him by heart to figure out what was the problem when it happened.

To their own disappointment, the whole squad shook their heads.

“What happened to the Paladin?” Rhys asked.

Nate sighed. “We got shot down. We lost sight of them both in the crash.”

“Is Paladin Danse dead?” A field scribe asked.

“We don’t know.” Arthur’s voice was low, not wanting to believe in such a dark fate. “What’s going on here?”

It was Paladin Jameson who gave him the answer. “Lancer-Captain Kells ordered us to come here, since we were the closest squadron.”

“You were going to attack this outpost?” Arthur said, raising his voice.

He trusted Kells with his decision.  _ Hell _ , it was pretty logical. But it could have gone wrong. So wrong.

“Yes, Elder. We all believed you had been kidnapped.”

“Jeez…” Nate laughed behind him. “We got here right on time. Oh and no need to thank us for saving your asses. Plus, it’s dumb. You wouldn’t have stood a chance.”

Rhys’ eyes went straight on Nate’s face, as if his gaze could strike him dead. “Don’t underestimate the BoS. And don’t over overestimate yourself,  _ raider. _ ” He said as if this last word was filled with filth.

“This is a fortified, closed space. Unless you come from above, you’re dead.” Nate’s jaw clenched as he got a bit closer. “And no need to  _ raider _ me, I’m proud of what I am.” His voice was harsh as sandpaper running on someone’s skin.

Without second thought, Arthur quickly put his arm in front of Nate’s chest, his coat brushing on his armor.

“Please, no conflict. Can you let your raiders know we’re here?” He asked with a soft tone.

“Yeah, you can come in but I can’t make any promise for your men.”

Nate cast one last glance at Arthur, before heading to the outpost.

Arthur then turned his head to his soldiers. “We’ll need a vertibird once the Overboss and I are done here. Once you send for one, you’ll head to our crashing site and look for any sign of Danse and Gage. If you see raiders,  _ do not _ engage combat with them, unless they’re from the Commonwealth.”

“How can we know where they’re from?”

“Commonwealth raiders will shoot at you.” Maxson said.

At least, some things never changed.

Nate heard it. 

That fucking request for a vertibird.

How could Maxson even get into one of those ever again? They almost died the last time. They lost Gage and Danse. Didn’t he understand the lesson the first time?

Nate was sitting on a crate near the entrance, waiting for Maxson. He had the time to talk to the Operators running the outpost, while Maxson was still outside talking to his men. 

No one had seen or heard from Gage. Where the fuck was he? Someone like him couldn’t just go missing–same with a Paladin in a whole power armor. Something was off. Nate just knew it.

A few minutes later, he finally saw Maxson coming towards him, alone.

“I’m not getting into a vertibird.” Nate immediately said, standing up.

“You have a great hearing.” Maxson sighed, leaning on a wall.

“It’s a flying target.” Nate crossed his arm over his chest.

“It’s faster and safer than walking.”

“We got shot down!”

Nate didn’t want to take the risk. Not again. He already had his fair share of military incidents, he didn’t need old wounds to reopen.  _ Again. _

“Well, I’m going with one. You do as you want.” Maxson sighed, shrugging.

Around them, the Operators were looking and talking under their breath but both of them didn’t really care.

“I'll go on foot.”

“It’s suicide!”

“I’ve made it so far!” Nate loudly said, raising his arms in disbelief.

“For fuck’s sake, Nate, just come with me!”

_ Nate.  _

It felt like Nate had suddenly been struck by lightning, his brain fried in an instant. His name on Maxson’s voice felt weird, in a  _ very nice _ way. 

And as much as he was annoyed by him at the moment, his whole body was ready to burst in flames any second from now.

In his mind, he heard it again and over again.  _ Nate. _ It never sounded this good before.

Laughing, Nate shook his head. “Oh, so now it’s Nate?”

“Don’t make me call you  _ raider _ .” Maxson chuckled before sighing. “Please, take the vertibird with me. It’s better.”

“Not to me.” Nate shook his head, his heart still pounding in his chest.

He slowly walked over Maxson, his hands in his pockets. As their eyes met, his heart got even worse.  _ God, he was gorgeous. _

“You told me how you needed action, that you were tired of being stuck in your airship.” Nate said in a soft, low voice that only both of them could hear. “This is your chance.”

Nate made a point.

Arthur couldn’t deny it. He also couldn’t deny the sweet sound of his name on his lips, wanting to say it all over again.  _ Nate, Nate, Nate. _

His thoughts were a total mess right now and Nate’s words only made it worse.

“C’mon, the Brotherhood knows you’re alive and fine. We can go on foot to the airport, you know you need it.”

Arthur sighed. Nate was right. He really was. For years, he felt trapped in his position, as if he was supposed to be kept safe from all danger. 

But the thrill of action ran through his veins. He even felt like he was losing some of his combat abilities because of this.

Nate’s words were filled with truth: it was his chance.

“Alright.” He whispered. “We’ll go on foot.”

“Yes! That’s a true warrior I see here!” Nate said, his palm patting Arthur’s beard.

It made Arthur lose his breath and maybe some of his mind, too.

“Stop that.” He laughed, putting Nate’s hand away. “Or I’ll have you thrown back into that cell at the airport once we’ll get there.”

“Liar. You want me to sleep in your quarters, I know it.” Nate chuckled as he stepped back.

Arthur shook his head, smiling.

But once again, Nate was probably right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're back!  
> Waiting for Sunday to post is sometimes so hard lmao
> 
> A HUGE thank you to Kara for helping me out with this, she's the best!  
> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, please don't forget to comment if you feel like it! 🥺🥺


	13. Those fingers look like appetizers

Nate had his hands buried in his pockets, his back was leaning against a wall as he waited for Maxson–he was still outside the outpost, talking to his men about what was coming next. He could definitely imagine Rhys, that dickhead, trying to change his mind about walking around Boston with a raider. God, how much he’d love to tie that guy to one of Nuka-World coasters, going full speed. 

Nate had taken his armor off after their conversation, giving his aching body the rest it needed after all those hours wearing it. He felt lighter, only wearing clothes.

“Overboss? Are you ready?” An operator asked, as she walked up to him.

“I am. The Elder, not so much.” Nate said, his gaze landing on her. “You can go back to your duties, I’ll come for you when it’s time.”

She nodded, before walking back to the booze still she was working on.

Nate needed to prepare a liquor stack for the rest of the journey–he wouldn’t take the risk of going into withdrawal once again. Last time was enough already.

Coming from the main gate, he finally heard Maxson’s voice saluting his men one last time. Nate took his hands out of his pants pockets as he approached him. “Everything’s good?”

“It is. My orders are my orders, they can’t go against my decision.” Maxson replied. “They’re sending a vertibird anyway, but it’s only for the items I got from the attacks. I don’t want to take the risk of losing them in combat or else.”

“Fine by me, as long as you don’t make me fly in one.”

“You know you’ll have to anyway? How else do you wanna get aboard the Prydwen?” Maxson asked with a puzzled look.

“Just throw me a rope and lift me up there.” 

“Is this sarcasm or are you really that dumb?”

“Dunno, whatever answer suits you best, Elder.” Nate grinned as he walked past him on his way to the operator. “Follow me.”

“Feels weird seeing you without your armor.” Maxson said, his blue eyes on him. “Wearing it makes you more buff than you actually are.”

Nate laughed; his brows frowned as he looked at him. What kind of thought was that? 

“Shit, does it disappoint you that I’m not jacked like you are?” He said as he exposed his clearly less impressive biceps.

“Yeah, huge bummer here.” Maxson replied with an exaggerated sigh.

Nate shook his head, surprised by how Maxson continued to open up to him. He was starting to look less like a bored leader and more like a natural twenty-two years old. The guy clearly needed some time off the Prydwen and how he was permanently solicited by his peers.

“You’re still very attracted to me, though.” Nate murmured with a husky tone, his green eyes darkening. He fought hard against his own laughter to keep a poker face and unsettle Maxson more. 

Which seemed to perfectly work, when Maxson awkwardly chuckled while shaking his head. 

“Just shut up, raider.”

Arthur was blushing under his beard.

He wanted to hide. To just put his coat all over his head and disappear once and for all. He hated how he felt unsettled by Nate, every time the guy smiled or lowered his voice.

The lack of human contact outside the BoS was really starting to become an issue here. He felt lost between his feelings. 

He couldn’t keep lying to himself and pretend he wasn’t in fact attracted to Nate. That he actually already had a few vivid images playing in his head. 

But at the same time, Arthur wanted to find a better explanation so badly. Like it was because of how unusual the whole thing actually was, or maybe the simple fact that his brain wasn’t used to the simplest flirt–his need to find a logical reason behind all of that only made it worse.

He had to focus on something else than Nate and everything about him.

Thankfully, the operator Nate led them to brought even more than a simple diversion. 

“We got a body. Like, a full person killed in the attack.” She said as she headed to a room behind what seemed to be a bar and place to eat.

Above the wood shack were hanged neon lights, made to attract the eyes and potential customers. Did their outpost actually work like small cities? 

Arthur couldn’t even count how many times he had been surprised by all of this already. From all the raiders bases he had seen in his life, the ones handled by Nuka-World were a lot different. More organized, less like a shit hole. They even had stores and such. 

He couldn’t deny the clear diverse organization between the two raider factions.

“Watch for your head.” The operator said as she opened the door.

Bending down when he entered, Arthur found himself in a food storage room. Against the walls were aligned shelves filled with all kinds of consumable goods, from the classical tatos to a good stock of pre-war food.

The dim light in the room suddenly got brighter as the operator opened one of the fridges. Inside was the corpse of a woman wearing a BoS uniform.

Arthur felt disgusted. 

Not by the sight of someone dead in a fridge, but by the mere idea of that someone usurping the Brotherhood.

“Do you know her?” Nate asked behind his back.

Arthur shook his head. “According to her uniform, she’s an initiate.” He actually welcomed every new member of the Brotherhood himself, but he was bad with remembering faces. The only initiates he actually knew the names by heart were the squires.

Slowly, he approached the body to take the holotags around her neck. “We’ll know who it belonged to before the theft. I’m going to send her back on the Prydwen aboard the vertibird.” He said, before turning his head towards the operator. “It was a very good call to put the body in the fridge. Our scribes will have the chance to perform an autopsy on her, if needed.”

“Yeah, we thought about what happened to you, Overboss.” She said, her eyes on Nate. “More than two hundred years old and still fresh. So, we figured it was a good idea.”

“It was. Good work.” Nate smiled at her. “We’re gonna need a few minutes with the body. Thank you.”

The operator nodded to both of them before heading out of the storage room. 

Nate got closer to the fridge, and to Arthur on the same occasion. The latter looked at him, his eyes running on Nate’s face while he focused on the corpse–concentration was all over his features.

“Are you alright?” Arthur asked in a low voice, as if he didn’t want to wake the dead woman up.

“Yeah, why?”

“Well, considering what you’ve been through, I’d totally understand you not being comfortable around a frozen body.”

Nate frowned in surprise. 

He wouldn’t have expected Maxson to actually care about how he felt. Nate faintly smiled. “I’m good. What’s making you so concerned about me?” He asked without the usual flirting tone for once. He genuinely was curious.

“You think I don’t care about how you feel?” Maxson said before clearing his throat right after. “I mean, I can’t have you in a bad place. You’re supposed to have my back.”

“That’s good. We’re gonna walk around Boston together, so yeah, it’s a good thing.” Nate nodded.

He was actually surprised they were coming to this. It made him happy, sort of. He didn’t want Maxson to feel forced to be around him. He wanted this to work, for the sake of both of their faction. 

They needed to join force without fear of each other if they wanted this problem to be solved quickly.

They spent some more minutes checking the corpse, before Nate felt his stomach aching. “Are you hungry?”

“Don’t tell me seeing this frozen woman makes you hungry.”

“Oh, she does. Those fingers look like appetizers.” Nate giggled, his eyes shining under the fridge’s light.

“Sorry, I need her in a complete state for my scribes. But I’m sure you got plenty already.” Maxson smiled as he pointed at the food all over the place. “By the way, I didn’t see any crops. How do you manage to get so much?”

“Uh…” 

“No, no. Say nothing. You’re raiders. You raid.”

“See, you’re not thinking straight. C’mon, let’s grab some food.” Nate said, heading out of the room.

This was going to be a problem later, he knew it. Maxson won’t be closing his eyes on their activities indeterminately. One day, that trust he was earning will break with no hope of fixing. This alliance was fragile, fixed-term. 

Nate was already dreading that moment–for the Brotherhood was a real, dangerous threat and Maxson was growing on him.

Nate really liked the man, beyond how his looks made him feel. He was curious about his personality, about how he was raised, how his life was–and how far the BoS’ dictates were implanted in his brain.

Looking over his shoulder, he saw Maxson following him to the bar. 

The stand was mostly made of wood, with a few compartments to store food and drinks. Placed not far from the storage room, it was easy for the operator in charge to refill his stock.

“Overboss, what can I get you?” The raider asked, both his palms on the stand.

Nate turned his head towards Maxson. “Hey, you like brahmin meat?” 

Maxson nodded as he got near him.

“So two ribeye steaks please, and we’ll take a bottle of vodka too.”

“I’ll have a Nuka-Cola instead, thank you.” Maxson said right after Nate.

“I got the classical, Cherry or Quantum.” The operator said, already grilling the meat Nate ordered.

“I’ll have Cherry, please.”

The raider put the two bottles on the stand, while Nate went through his pockets to get his caps. “Here, we’re gonna sit over there, thank you.”

“I’ll bring your meat, Overboss.”

Nate nodded and gestured to Maxson to follow him. They both sat at a table made of iron, the kind of furniture found in vaults. They reproduced it in their outpost, since it was more durable than woodcraft. 

“You gave him caps, why?” Maxson asked, opening his Nuka-Cola.

“Gotta keep our economy running.” Nate was already taking a first sip of vodka from the bottle.

He saw Maxson looking around them, detailing the outpost and the raiders populating it. As Nate followed his gaze, he noticed how the operators were looking at Maxson. Dark glances and such. No surprise.

“When your friend told me I was hated, she didn’t lie.” Maxson said, mentioning Mags and her words.

Nate opened his mouth as the operator brought them their food. He waited for him to go back to his stand to finally talk. “You’re in a raider outpost. Of course, everyone hates you here.”

“Yeah, but what of the Commonwealth in general?”

Nate’s features curled up in surprise. He raised his eyes to meet Maxson’s–behind the blue of his iris, he saw something. A faint of what seemed to be apprehension. Not quite a fear, but enough to catch his attention.

“I have no idea.” Nate shrugged, cutting his meat. “I’ve been a raider almost since I left the vault, so my vision on you is biased by that.”

“But you met the Minutemen.”

“You were still in the Capitol. I was already Overboss when you rolled in the Commonwealth with your big ass airship.” He said before taking a first bite.

Maxson seemed absent for a second. His fork buried in his food, not moving. What was going on with him? Was he really that unsure about what people thought of them?

“Look, the most I heard about you was from caravans coming to Nuka-World, as well as some travelers.” Nate continued. His words seemed to bring Maxson back to Earth and he started to eat. 

“And what did you hear?”

Nate sighed. This wasn’t going to be a nice conversation; he knew it already. “They see you as a threat to freedom.”

Maxson almost choked on his Nuka-Cola to his words. “But we’re here to fight the Institute!”

“And some people too.”

“Yeah, whoever is a threat to mankind.” Maxson replied, confidence in his voice.

“C’mon, I’ve met some really cool ghouls!” Nate shrugged. 

He remembered how shook he had been when he met his first non-feral ghoul. For days, he had been fighting against them, barely able to understand what they were. 

The first he ever talked to was Daisy in Goodneighbor, quickly followed by Hancock, Ham and Kent Connolly. All of them had struck him on how  _ human _ they actually stayed on the inside. Real people, beyond what happened to them.

Hell, even Oswald back in Nuka-World had touched him.

Nate had a soft spot for ghouls. He wasn’t repulsed by them and he never agreed with any slander towards them. The mere idea of genociding ghouls was simply fucking sickening to him.

This wasn’t Maxson’s thoughts–he vigorously shook his head. “Ghouls are an abomination.”

“You’re fucking wrong.” Nate said without even thinking.

“And you’re not wrong for stealing food from innocent people, instead of just making your raiders grow crops?”

“Oh come on, you’re gonna make me believe that you actually have a huge vegetable garden at the airport? I know you’re also stealing from settlements.”

“Stealing?” Maxson exclaimed, his eyes darkening. “We’re offering those farmers protection in exchange for a part of their goods. We are not thieves like the rest of you.”

“Protection from what? It’s your job to get rid of Super Mutants and all!”

“From  _ you _ !”

A sudden silence fell in the outpost, all raiders stopping their activities to look at the two of them. 

Arthur’s heart was beating hard in his chest.

Before him, Nate was clenching on his fork. His usually green eyes had turned dark. His face was so far from the regular relaxed look he had. 

Arthur was  _ right _ . Ghouls were not humans anymore and needed to be put down. Raiders were thieves, nothing more. 

As much as he liked the guy, Nate was a raider and no more different than the rest of his kind. 

They were working together at the moment, yes–but they were still enemies that couldn’t agree on the long term.

“So, this is how you see me, a thief.” Nate said, anger in his voice.

“Don’t be like that. You told Rhys you were proud of what you are. A  _ raider _ . A thief and a killer.”

“Yeah, well you’re closed-minded. You’re only thinking what you’ve been taught, and nothing else.”

“I can think for myself.” Arthur hated that. He hated how many people only thought of him as a puppet made by the Lyons and the other Elders. 

Since he was a kid, he noticed how people tried to shape him into the perfect Brotherhood specimen. 

Arthur was more than that. He  _ needed _ to be more than that. He wanted a life for himself, and not only as Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel. He was a person, with proper thoughts and feelings–not some name put on top of the hierarchy.

“That’s the problem. You want to, but you can’t.” Nate replied, his arms crossed on his chest.

“Are you going to ignore the fact that you’re terrorizing people all around the Commonwealth?” Arthur said, not wanting to go on with his opinions and such.

“I’m not ignoring it. How could I when I’m the one giving the orders?”

It hurt just to hear the words. Like a reality check right in the face after finally accepting the fact that he enjoyed Nate’s company. 

But it was most needed, Arthur thought to himself. He couldn’t let his emotions take over during this mission. He couldn’t forget Nate’s true nature.

“So how do we play this?” Nate added. “Are we declaring war on each other right away, or do we finish this?”

Arthur sighed. 

The evidence was clear. This won’t be ending in a nice way. 

Only question was: would they eliminate a common threat together, before jumping in another conflict against each other?

As a BoS member, the answer was  _ war _ –not giving Nate the chance to keep growing his empire in the Commonwealth before it’s too late. Getting rid of the threat he is.

But as a leader, the answer was the opposite. 

Considering what was happening with the fake Brotherhood attacks and the risk of these attacks spreading to innocent settlements, Arthur’s decision was made. 

“We finish this.” He said, extending his hand towards Nate.

“Fine by me, future number one enemy.” Nate replied, shaking his hand.

The rest of the supper had been weird.

They barely talked, and didn’t look at each other.

When Arthur got to the shack where he’d spend the night, his head was on the verge of exploding. 

With difficulty, he got rid of his coat to lie on the bed, his fingers pressing against his skull. The whole argument clearly didn’t help. 

Their adventurous time together was running out and soon enough, he’ll have to leave behind their banter, that incongruous trust, their good teamwork. 

He’ll have to leave Nate behind and worse than that, he’d have to kill him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!
> 
> Things are getting a bit rough between those two, I suggest you guys buckle up for what's coming next 👀  
> How do you think this fight is going to affect them? I'd love to hear your take on this!
> 
> A big thank you to Kara for her tremendous help and support! <3  
> I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it!


	14. Older than the brotherhood

The night had been tough for Arthur.

He barely slept, his head was a battlefield of pain. He fought against the idea of using a stimpak, not wanting to rely on them so his body wouldn’t get soft.

He gave up before the first lights of the day, sinking the stimpak’s needle in his chest with the pain slowly fading away from his skull.

When he got out of the shed in the morning, his head was feeling better but his body was tired. He yawned discreetly when Nate walked by him, moving around as he filled his bag with what they needed for the long walk ahead of them.

During his sleepless night, Arthur had lost himself in his thoughts, replaying over and over his conversation with Nate and how badly things had gone. The weird bubble they got into after the vertibird crash exploded without a single warning, sending them both on opposite sides.

Arthur thought about the possibility of getting rid of him sooner than planned, waiting for them to get farther into Boston alone before putting an end to Nate’s life and reign of terror–but they agreed on finishing this mission and Arthur wasn’t the kind to break agreements. 

He needed to think carefully about his next move. Should he lock Nate up in a cell as soon as they arrive at the airport? Should he even allow him aboard the Prydwen?

He had proven himself to be trusted, but for how long? Nate having his eyes once again on the Brotherhood’s base was too dangerous. He would certainly search for any weakness or breach for his raiders army.

Arthur always had a natural way of thinking when it came to strategy and military decisions but this one would automatically start a war he hadn’t planned to have before dealing with the Institute. 

This unknown enemy was the Brotherhood’s priority, not Nuka-World.

“You got everything you need?” Nate asked, bringing Arthur back to reality.

Arthur nodded, showing the bag over his shoulder. “Thank you for the bag, it will bring itself useful.”

“Didn’t want you to use all the space in mine.”

Nate ironically laughed but Arthur smiled.

It was going to be hard, being with him on the road and knowing it would all end up in flames in the end. Nate had been a breath of fresh air in the last two years of Arthur’s life, allowing him to return back to his younger years when he would be on the field, without the weight of being an Elder.

“The vertibird is probably already back to the Prydwen.” Arthur said as they got to the gates. “We will have our first answers when we arrive, the scribes are already working on what we found.”

“If it didn’t crash in a building before that.” Nate replied in an unamused tone.

It wasn’t the same as before. Last night’s discussion had spilled its poison in their usual way of talking. Something was off and they could both feel it.

“Are you sure you still wanna do this?” Nate asked when they exited the outpost. “I wouldn’t mind, you know. It’s not like we’re all good.”

Arthur shook his head, his hand on his bag’s handle. “You said it yourself, I need this. This is probably my last chance to be on the field for months.”

“Oh, so you’re not planning on attacking us right away? Unless you’ll just send your troops without taking the time to show up in Nuka-World yourself.”

“You know I wouldn’t give you any details of my plan, right?”

Nate shrugged. His eyes were fixed on the decaying sidewalk they were on. “Maybe it will work one day.”

“It won’t.” Arthur’s voice was sharp.

Silence followed afterwards, with only their quiet steps to end it.

Nate had spent most of his night drinking alone on his bed while reading a Grognak comic. The empty bottle ended up rolling on the floor as he fell into slumber. It was a dreamless night. No flashbacks. No sensation of being in Alaska again. He didn’t hear the cries of his brothers in arms, nor the sobbing of his sister while he was lying in a coma. 

He just slept through the night with his veins filled with the helpful liquor.

Nate wanted to drink right now. 

Walking around Boston only reminded him of his first passage here with Gage. Three days had passed since his disappearance and Nate felt his heart wrench more and more each passing hour. He wanted to give up, to leave Maxson right there and go look for his friend.

Nate hadn’t been this scared in months. In  _ years _ . For it reminded him of the first time he lost the people fighting with him. 

He couldn’t go through all that pain again. He would rather put a bullet in his brain. 

Wanting to get rid of those thoughts, he laid his eyes on Maxson, who was focused on their surroundings–he seemed ready to jump on any threat that would dare attack them. 

The guy clearly was cut for action. His whole persona exuded power and leadership. The Brotherhood had clearly made a good choice trusting him as their commander. 

“I can feel you staring. Put an end to it.” Maxson said, still looking around them.

“Why? You fear I might find a flaw on your face?” Nate’s voice was suave as he spoke.

Even with what happened last night, it was simply impossible for him to stop acting like that. Being flirtatious was like a mother tongue to him, like an accent he couldn’t get rid of. 

Maxson met his gaze, his blue eyes like a weapon capable of killing him right on the spot. “I didn’t think you’d keep doing this, raider.”

“Doing what?” This time, a grin drew itself on Nate’s full lips.

He couldn’t help it. Maxson and him could be fighting against each other on a battlefield and Nate would  _ still _ tell him he was one hell of a pretty lad. 

Maxson sighed before turning his head back on the road. Not far from them was a destroyed museum, with its façade still displaying advertisements for its then-current exhibition. 

“I wonder how much valuable historical pieces are still inside.” Arthur said to change the subject.

Nate’s green eyes went on the building. He recognized the place. He had been there before with Nora.

“I’d totally smoke you in a history test.” Nate said as they walked past the museum.

“You’re older than the Brotherhood itself.”

“Oh shit, you’re right!” Nate said with a smile. “Do you wanna lead me too, Maxson?”

“This is unbelievable.” Maxson sighed as he shook his head.

Nate giggled, proud of still being able to push him on the edge. It felt good to see their fight and its consequences didn’t affect this side of their relationship. 

Nate didn’t want it to vanish.

“I keep hitting on you because I can.” Nate said in a more serious tone. “Before all of this, one couldn’t even look too long at another guy in the military.”

His years of service had been really hard on his love and sexual life. The taboo of homosexuality in the ranks felt like a permanent threat. He hadn’t felt safe during his career, barely daring to try his luck with the men who seemed to show interest in him.

Two-hundred years later, the stigma is long gone.

“Was it that bad?” Maxson asked when Nate didn’t even expect him to care.

“Yeah, but it’s all in the past. Now people don’t give a fuck who you shag.”

“Oh, trust me, my people would care if I had sex with a raider king.”

“Wait, what?” Nate asked, half shocked, with a smile across his scared face.

Did he hear that well? Or was it the remains of his hangover playing a trick on his mind? 

Nate felt his heart get carried away while his brain was already picturing a  _ very _ graphic scene. Oh, he had thought about it.  _ A lot _ .

He didn’t expect Maxson thinking about it, less  _ speaking _ of it. Or was it a joke? A simple, logical statement?

Nate felt suddenly lost. He hated that.

It came out too fast of his mouth, his lips unable to stop his words. 

Arthur didn’t even know how it happened. It didn’t even cross his mind before his tongue. 

This was a guy he would be at war against in a near future. This was a raider.

And Arthur didn’t even _have_ _experience_ in that matter. 

Years of training and expectations with the Brotherhood didn't provide any opportunities for sex. 

Arthur knew he could do it if he felt like it, that there would always be people ready to lie in the Elder’s bed. 

But that was the whole problem, he didn’t want to do this with someone under his command.

He could hear Nate’s slight laugh as he spoke. “I’m no king, but I’m open to it.”

“You’re annoying.”

Arthur’s face was so red it actually burned. His face turned to the buildings on his right–he didn’t even dare to think about letting Nate see him like that.

“No I’m not, I’m entertaining.”

Arthur wanted to just run away from here when they heard a loud rumble behind them. 

_ Thunder _ .

Quickly, they turned around from where they came. Coming from the southwest was a green fog filled with vivid bolts. 

The atmosphere was already changing. The light started to fade in the streets of Boston as the storm made its way through the skies.

“Ah shit.” Nate whispered, his pip-boy suddenly making noise.

“We need to find shelter until it passes. We cannot stay outside.” Arthur said while looking around them.

Their previous conversation was already long gone, like the fog itself made it vanish from the surface.

“Diamond City is just around the block. I got a house there, let’s go.” Nate said, both of them already pacing towards the stadium.

“Looks like I’m gonna see it after all.” Arthur added.

It didn’t feel like it but he was actually kind of happy about that. The radstorm was the perfect excuse to finally set foot in Diamond City.

The market of Diamond City was vibrant when they arrived, with people all around getting to their houses as the storm approached. 

Arthur took the time to look around, rotating his body as his eyes discovered the stadium for the first time. Even with the green fog taking over, he could still see the vivid colors all around the place.

“I’m gonna buy us noodles before it turns too radioactive.” Nate said, already walking over a stand held by a protectron. 

“How did you manage to get a house here as a raider?” Arthur asked as he followed him.

His gaze was still all over the place. A place like this would be a tremendous asset to the Brotherhood. An alliance with a city like that would bring them the resources they needed for everyone aboard the Prydwen.

“They didn't know who I was when I bought it. And when they found out, I told the mayor that I would bring all of Nuka-World here if he ever refused me entry.” Nate laughed, clearly proud of himself.

“Nan-ni shimasho-ka?” The mechanical voice of the protectron asked right away.

“Oh right, sorry mate.” Nate said, turning his face to the robot. “Are the noodles still fresh or did the rads get to them already?”

“Nan-ni shimasho-ka?”

“This is broken.” Arthur said with his brow furrowed. “Don’t waste our time here.”

“Nan-ni shimasho-ka?”

“It’s doing just fine! Yes, we’ll have two, thank you.” Nate replied.

Arthur watched closely, his hand on his bag ready to get his weapon out. The protectron provided two bowls of hot noodles. Nate handed him one right after he left some caps on the counter. “Here you are. Careful, don’t burn yourself.”

“Thank you.” Arthur brought the bowl to his nose, smelling the nice aroma coming from it.

“Nan-ni shimasho-ka?”

“No, no, no.” Nate said, taking his own bowl. “I know he’s all muscular and shit, but he doesn’t need more.”

“Are you talking about me?” 

“Who else?” Nate smiled. “C’mon, my place is right over there.”

Arthur followed him to a small house not so far from the noodles stand. Nate opened the door, letting him go inside first. 

Walking around the place as Nate turned on the lights, it revealed itself far from what one could expect from a raider’s home. It was tidy, well organized and actually quite nicely decorated.

“Did you buy the house like this?” Arthur asked while he put his bowl on the table.

“No, it was mostly empty. Here, you can put your stuff on this chair.”

Nate put his bowl on the table as well and got rid of his armor.

Arthur kept looking around for a few seconds, taking off his coat at the same time. “Not what I would have expected from a raider.” He said as he put in belongings on the chair.

“My actual situation doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten everything I ever did before that.” There wasn’t any sign of meanness in his voice. “Eat while it’s hot, you’ll have all the time to look around after.”

The Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel having a meal the Nuka-World’s Overboss was a sight to see. Something not made to last in a world scorched by warfare.

In his mind, Arthur played over again their fight from last night. He thought about it as they walked into Boston. There was no happy way out of this situation. One day soon, they would be against each other, no matter how they got along.

“Oh, have you ever played Blast Radius? I got one here in pretty good shape!” Nate said, already getting up to get the board game.

“I was a kid last time I played it. I don’t really remember the rules.” Arthur replied before taking a first bite from his noodles. 

It was delicious. The best he ever ate, actually. “This is really good.”

“Told you.” Nate smiled. In his hands was the game. He put it on the table and opened it. “Right, I’ll explain the rules so you can remember them.”

Arthur sat back in his chair, his bowl in one hand and the fork in the other. His blue eyes lost themselves in Nate's features. His mind, too. Nate’s words from earlier were echoing in his head.  _ I’m no king, but I’m open to it _ . Did he actually mean that? Did Nate actually think about sleeping with him?

Since they first met, Arthur thought it was just fun and games for Nate. That he was like that with everyone around him.

The more time they spend together, the more he started to believe it was different with him.

Arthur couldn’t be sure. It was stupid. All of this was stupid. They met  _ five _ days ago and even if they had been continuously together from then, it was ridiculous.

Arthur repeated in his mind that same sentence over and over again.  _ This is ridiculous, you’re just troubled because it’s different from all you’ve ever kn _ …

“You’re the one staring now.” Nate’s husky voice dragged him back to Earth.

“Hum…” Arthur said, putting his now empty bowl on the table. “It’s the fatigue.”

Nate’s explanation of the rules clearly didn’t interest Maxson as much as his face.

It was like he could have felt Maxson’s gaze actually  _ touch _ his skin while he talked. It made his veins boil and his heart race. 

After what happened last night, it should have been all forgotten. But Nate’s attraction to Maxson was getting worse.

He smiled at Maxson's reply, biting his lower lip at the same time. “Yeah, sure thing.”

“Believe what you want, raider.”

“Oh, I do.”

The atmosphere was getting heavier by the second. They could still hear the thunderstorm outside, but it seemed so far away when they’re eyes locked.

Nate felt a pain in his chest, as if he had trouble breathing. His in mind, all he could see was Arthur. He kept imagining him getting closer to him, brushing his bare skin with his own fingers. Feeling the heat of Arthur’s body against his, the sensation of their lips hovering each other.

_ God, how much he needed this _ .

Nate took a hard breath. “Can I kiss you?”

Before the declaration of war and the inevitable combat. Before Maxson would get the chance to get away from his sight once and for all.

Nate wanted this. He wanted  _ him _ .

If Arthur had been able to breathe right now, he would have choked on thin air.

His cheeks turned red under his beard, quickly followed by his whole face. He heard that right, he had no doubt. 

It shouldn’t be like this. Arthur shouldn’t feel like this, but his desire seemed like a fire in his body. He wasn’t used to this feeling. Was it even normal? Was it actually desire or something he misinterpreted? 

His mind was already on the next step, however. It played a clear image of him, slowly brushing his lips against Nate’s. Their chests against one another as Nate’s tongue found its way in Arthur’s mouth.

He wanted to feel that, for once. Hell, he wanted to feel  _ something _ . 

But the man driving his body on the verge of combustion was a raider. More than that, Nate was Nuka-World’s Overboss.

Arthur felt lost, completely overrun by the whole situation. As a leader of men, his next action was clear.

Retreat.

“No.” Two letter that felt like sandpaper on his tongue.

Nate felt like something stabbed him in the chest. Not a pain, but something worse. 

Of course, Maxson had said no. What did he actually expect for an answer? A  _ yes _ ? 

Shaking his head with a soft smile on his lips, Nate lowered his gaze. “I tried.” And failed.

He stood up to put the two bowls away in the sink. His heart was still beating way too fast, as if his mind didn’t send it the news. 

“Do you still wanna play?” Nate asked after clearing his throat.

“Yeah, we got time. The storm is a big one today.” Maxson’s voice was different from usual, as if he was fighting against his own words. 

Deep inside, Nate hoped that Arthur was holding a  _ yes _ back. One that would eventually come out before the end of their adventure.

They played for about two hours before Nate went to check outside. It didn’t take long for him to come right back inside, his pip-boy’s Geiger counter beeping.

“The night is near, and the radstorm is not going anywhere.” Nate said.

“We should sleep here. Boston can be dangerous at night, even with the Brotherhood’s patrols.” Arthur couldn’t decide if his idea was good or not. On a strategic level, it was. On a more personal one, it clearly wasn’t.

“You’re right. We’ll get to the airport tomorrow.” Nate moved as he talked, opening a trunk to get what seemed to be clothes. “I got running water here, you can take a shower if you want. I also have some clothes too big for me you can wear tonight if you want me to wash your uniform.”

Arthur stood up, walking over Nate to check the clothes he got out. That should do it for the time. Looking around him, he searched for the bathroom. “Where’s your shower?”

“Behind the yellow curtain, just there.” Nate went to open it, revealing a small corner where a showerhead was hanging. “Don’t worry, I’ll be upstairs and won’t be creeping on you. Suit yourself and tell me when you’re done.”

Without another word, Nate went to the stairs and disappeared to the level above.

Arthur waited for some more minutes before unzipping his black uniform. He slowly ran his fingers over his injured shoulder. The stimpaks worked their magic, his skin was bearing only a small scar.

It took him a few more minutes to take his underwear off–it was the first time in two years he was ever naked somewhere aside from his private quarters aboard the Prydwen. 

Arthur turned the shower on, watching over his shoulder every two seconds but Nate seemed to stay true to his word.

The water was cold, but it was more than enough to relax his muscles. He closed his eyes, his face under the stream. He thought about Nate, again. Of his question. Of the way his eyes seemed to undress him.

Arthur sighed, trying to get the images out of his mind but they were only replaced with more scenes of them together.

Did his brain take their fight as a cue to move into higher gear? He hated that. He felt like he had no control over all of this.

Arthur stopped the water stream and quickly dried his skin with a towel before putting the clothes on.

“I’m done!” He said from the ground floor.

Nate had spent the whole time trying to focus on something else but Arthur and failed miserably.

He almost jumped out of surprise when he heard his voice from downstairs.

Gathering his thoughts with troubles and after taking a quick sip of bourbon, Nate went down the stairs.

In the middle of the room, Maxson was drying his hair with the towel. He looked so different without his uniform and battlecoat. Almost like… 

Like it was the scene from before the war.

Nate softly smiled as he walked over the shower. “That Nuka-World shirt suits you. Keep it.”

“This is not the proper attire for me.” Maxson replied, placing the wet towel on a chair for it to dry.

“Who gives a shit? You’re the Elder.” 

With care, Nate took off his shirt and put it in the box he used as a laundry basket. His right arm was covered with the usual sleeve, hiding his burnt skin.

Arthur couldn’t help but look.

Was the guy really going to get naked in front of him and shower with the curtain open? It wouldn’t even be a surprise in the end.

“Don’t worry.” Nate said. “I’m not an exhibitionist.”  _ Shit, did he read his mind or what? _

Arthur didn’t say anything. Instead, he went to take his coat to clean it.

In the corner of his eyes, he however caught a glimpse of Nate’s chest and back, both half-covered with scars and burns. Under his left pectoral was a scar bigger than the others–it went from his sternum to his side.

“How did you get that?” Arthur asked, mimicking the scar on himself.

“My fight against Colter.” Nate answered before disappearing behind the curtain. 

Arthur saw him throwing his remaining clothes before hearing the water stream. He sat on the bed near the second entrance, his back against the wall.

“It’s a big one. How did you manage to win after that?”

Arthur wanted to ask him about his arm. He wanted to know what had happened for him to be so secretive of it, but he couldn’t bring himself to do so. He didn’t want to force Nate and ruin the last days they got ahead of them.

Instead, he heard Nate laughing under the shower. “Man I have no idea. Probably the adrenaline or some shit like that.”

Arthur wondered how it was back in Nuka-World. What the park looked like under Nate’s rule. Was it a total mess, or was it just as organized as this place and their outposts?

The water stopped and Nate came out from behind the shower, his towel around his waist. “Is this ok?” He asked as he put their dirty clothes in a basin. “You tell me if it makes you uncomfortable, I’ll put something else on.”

He didn’t bother Arthur at all–he actually  _ liked _ the view. Nate’s blond hair was darker from the water, his strands of hair on each side of his face instead of pushed back like Arthur’s own hairstyle.

“It’s fine.” Arthur said, turning his head away before his heart could start to race again. “Where will I sleep?”

“The bed you’re sitting on. Mine’s upstairs.” Nate replied as he started to wash their clothes.

Arthur nodded. This was perfect. For a moment, he feared the idea of having to sleep in the same bed as Nate. 

He needed to be elsewhere than next to him right now.

Nate quickly finished his chores, hanging the wet but clean clothes in the warmest area of the house.

“Do you need anything else?” He asked as he walked past Maxson.

“I’m all good, thank you.”

“Cool, goodnight then. See you tomorrow.” Nate smiled.

“Goodnight.” Arthur said, still sitting on the bed.

Nate went up the stairs, throwing the towel away before getting in his bed.

He sighed, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose.  _ What the fuck did happen today? _ He thought to himself. 

He clearly hadn’t expected things to go this way after last night but it seemed they both kind of rushed themselves, fearing the outcome of the mission. At least, it was what he thought had happen to him and his stupid brain.

He couldn’t think for Maxson, however.

If only he knew what went through Arthur’s mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sunday update! ✨  
> Writing this chapter was a roller-coaster of emotions lol, I hope you guys liked it!
> 
> A big thank you to Kara for her precious help! <3  
> See you next week for a big and important chapter 👀


	15. A pretty red necklace

The small stream of water next to the road sounded like a clock ticking, each passing second digging a bigger hole between the two men.

Nate glanced to the stream, letting his eyes follow it as they walked down the pavement. He didn’t know if he would have preferred silence rather than the constant flicker of the water.

Next to him, Arthur was focused on his footing. They hadn’t talked since they had left Diamond City, about thirty minutes ago, only agreeing on getting farther from Back Bay to avoid the Super Mutants. 

Nate wanted to talk. He hated the constant silence and the way everything has been going downward with Arthur. His proposal from last night clearly put grease on the fire of their fight, making it burn brighter than the heat in Nate’s chest.

Discreetly, he glanced at Arthur, his eyes like thieves trying not to be caught. A week was nothing in one’s life. A week is barely something to remember. Yet, this one had only made Nate’s feelings turn into a raging war.

He had lost track of Gage, abandoning him to the Commonwealth and its dangers. He was ashamed of himself, of his way of handling all of this. This wasn’t him. Nate wasn’t that kind of leader, putting his own interests before his men and even if he  _ knew _ that shedding some light on this whole attack issue was their biggest problem, he couldn’t help but feel like it was the wrong decision. 

Nate wanted Gage to be his top priority, nothing else.

“Is that a Minutemen flag?” Arthur asked under his breath, stopping his footing and squinting to see better.

Nate followed his gaze. Between two old lamp posts displayed on the Esplanade was floating a blue flag depicting a rifle under a bolt. The sight itself irked Nate. Curling his full lips in disdain, he fought against his urge to spit on the ground.

“Fucking pussies. We cleared this amphitheater three months ago with the Operators and they just settled here with pride.” Hate ran so smoothly on his tongue.

Nate knew their ranks had gotten bigger those last few months, following Preston Garvey’s hard work as the General of the Minutemen. God, how much did he hate that guy. If only he had known at that time, he wouldn’t have saved his ass back in Concord.

Things were fine to begin with but when he became Overboss of Nuka World, that sweet understanding between them went sour. Nate still had respect for the man and his efforts but it stopped right where the despise began. The conflict had known its zenith when Nuka World started raiding Garvey’s settlements.

“You should have put an outpost here if you didn’t want it to be claimed by someone else.” Arthur said in a half harsh voice. “Don’t come crying now.”

“Piss off.”

“Real far from the kind of things you were telling me last night.” Arthur darkly laughed. 

Nate laid his eyes on him, jaw clenching in anger. “Now that we see the Prydwen from here, you’re really getting into that war mood with me, aren’t you?”

“I am stating the obvious. Let’s move.”

Walking closer to the settlement, Nate kept his hand tight on his rifle, ready to fire if necessary. It wouldn’t be his first Minutemen casualties. They had to go around it, without going much further into downtown Boston.

That’s when Arthur suddenly stopped him, his strong arm resting against Nate’s chest. “Stop walking.”

“What now? You finally wanna make out?”

“I see a power armor in the settlement with what looks like the Brotherhood’s insignia.”

Arthur was almost sure of it. 

From here, his blue eyes couldn’t see perfectly but the shape of the painted mark on the chest piece was too familiar to him.

He heard Nate checking the ammunition in his rifle. “It’s fucking them, I should have known it. They’re attacking us with your equipment to start a war between us and get rid of our two factions at the same time.”

“Give me your rifle.” Arthur said as he extended his arm. “I need to see that power armor closer.”

He kept a calm behavior, needing to fully analyze the situation before making any assumptions or decisions – the Minutemen had no reason to be at war with the Brotherhood.  _ Did they, really? _

Arthur thought of Nate’s words again, about how the people of the Commonwealth feared for their liberty as they grew stronger from the airport. Arthur cared about them, it wasn’t his attention to bring terror but only protection against the enemies of humanity.

“I’m not giving it to you, the fuck are you on?” Nate’s voice was filled with anger and anticipation.

He wanted to storm the settlement, Arthur could feel it. There was a demonic aura coming from Nate, like a suffocating smell of death.

“Then look at the power armor through the scope and describe it to me.”

Nate sighed loudly but he obliged, putting his rifle against his cheekbones to use the scope. 

Arthur looked closely at him, how his long fingers curled steadily against the handgrip. Everything about Nate screamed  _ soldier _ , from the way he stood to the way he methodically held his weapon. Army still flooded in his veins albeit from his life as a raider. He would have been a perfect member of the Brotherhood, Arthur was sure of it. If only Nate wasn’t a raging, blood-thirsty warlord –  _ if only _ .

“It’s a T60.” Nate whispered against his rifle. “It does have the Brotherhood’s mark and it’s painted orange in some parts.”

“That’s Danse’s armor!” Arthur exclaimed, blood shooting through his veins.

It  _ had _ to be Danse’s. The orange paint job was his signature. 

The mere idea of finally finding Danse relieved him from a burden he didn’t think to be that heavy in the beginning. Soldiers disappeared in battles, but Danse was Danse. His best element, maybe the best member of the Brotherhood across the whole continent. 

Relief drew a smile on Arthur’s mouth but questions didn’t take too long to flood his mind: why was Danse here and not aboard the Prydwen? Why did he leave his power armor like that, unsupervised? 

Was he even alive?

Nate’s heart missed a beat at Arthur’s words. “Gage…” He whispered under his breath.

Quickly, he looked through the scope again, detailing every single foot of the settlement. His lungs barely worked as he searched for any trace of his second in command. 

“What do you see?” Arthur asked, his voice filled with a feeling Nate never heard before. A clear anticipation rooted in hopes.

“Shh, I need to focus.” He breathed, his grip tight on Overseer’s Guardian.

A few seconds passed, filled with a heavy silence. The more he inspected the settlement, the less his hope of finding Gage here rose. 

There was zero sign of him. 

Slowly lowering his rifle, Nate swallowed with difficulty, his saliva feeling like sand tearing down his throat. “I can’t see him.” His voice was on the verge of breaking.

“What about Danse?” Arthur didn’t even try to care about Gage’s life. All he wanted to know was if the Paladin was alive. 

A raider was a raider despite he’d been working with one for the past week. Danse on the other hand was a person dear to him, someone he could actually appreciate beyond his ability as a fighter. They commonly had good conversations together, even cracking a joke on a rarer occurrence. 

When Arthur became Elder, Danse was the first to swear loyalty to him albeit he was still a teenager. Since that day, the Paladin had always been the soldier he had the most confidence in. His trust towards Danse couldn’t even be expressed in the common language. 

“Nothing beside his armor.”

“I have to see it for myself. It can’t stay in civilians’ hands.” Arthur said, already walking toward the settlement.

But he felt five fingers taking hold of his arm, like needles burying themselves in his skin. “Wait!” Nate said. “Are you serious? They’ll shoot me on sight! They want my fucking head on a spike!”

Arthur turned around, looking at him while his hand put Nate’s away. “Do you want to stay here while your friend might be somewhere in that settlement?” 

Nate was right, however. It was no secret that the Minutemen were at war with Nuka World and the occasion to take the Overboss out would be too beautiful to let it slipper. 

“What I want is to find Gage safe and sound without taking a bullet in the head.” Nate hissed.

Arthur sighed, looking alternately at Nate and the settlement. They couldn’t just walk right into it with pretty smiles.  _ It was how Nate got to him first, actually _ .

“I’ll walk there first, alone. Then, I’ll bring you in once everything is sorted out with the settlers.”

“Oh c’mon! Not even your pretty smile is gonna prevent them from skinning me alive!”

“What do you want then?!” Arthur yelled suddenly, unable to hold his patience much longer through Nate’s instability. 

Arthur didn’t want to wait one more second, he had to check the armor and for any sign of Danse. All of his worries about the Paladin were fighting their way back to his mind, not giving him much room to think about Nate’s fate.

Yet, he couldn’t fathom the idea of Nate getting killed. That would turn into a bigger problem when they’ll be fighting each other.

Nate’s heart was racing in his chest. 

His mind was screaming him to just storm the place, shooting everyone on sight until he could finally find Gage. His friend better be alive, or Nate would bring death and destruction on every Minutemen settlement across the Commonwealth. 

Struggling against his own thoughts, he shook his head and pinched his nose. Arthur was right, they didn’t have much choice on how to operate here. “Go. I’ll stay here.” He finally whispered under his heavy breathing.

Arthur slowly nodded, their eyes locking as they mutually understood each other’s grievances. They were just two men with a sudden shot of hope injected right into their veins.

“Be careful.” Nate’s voice felt like a soft touch against Arthur’s skin.

It took him aback. Nate’s sudden mood swings were kind of hard to follow. 

Arthur nodded again. “I will. Don’t do anything stupid.”

“I am stupid.” Nate softly smiled, making Arthur’s tired muscle in his chest stiffen for a second.

“You are.” Arthur said in a more delicate tone. “I’ll wave at you when you’ll be clear to come.”

Stepping away from the road towards the amphitheater, Arthur walked upright with his hands slowly raised to prevent any misunderstanding. 

The guards immediately spotted him, aiming their guns at him. The feeling weirded Arthur out and he realized how protected he had been those last two years aboard his airship – this wasn’t a good thing.

“May I have a word with the person in charge here? I’m part of the Brotherhood of Steel.” He didn’t mention his rank for safety precautions. If people really saw them as a danger, it wouldn’t be wise of him to reveal himself to potential hostiles.

“You’re here for your soldier, ain’t ya?” One of the guards asked.

_ Danse, she was talking about Danse! _ The Paladin was somewhere in that settlement. Arthur’s heart jumped as he took another step forward. He was so damn relieved he could barely find his words. “I am. How is he?”

“Wait here, don’t move.” The guard said before talking to her partner. From where he was, Arthur couldn’t even try to read her lips. 

His impatience grew stronger as his heart pounded. He couldn’t wait any longer to get news on Danse’s status.

The guard hurried herself back into the settlement. Arthur could see through the makeshift barricades the power armor belonging to the Paladin.

The gate opened on a man wearing what reminded Arthur of the American Revolution’s uniforms, accompanied with two guards including the one he talked to.

“Preston Garvey, General of the Minutemen. Who I am speaking to?”

Arthur had the possibility to lie again, invent a random name and position in the Brotherhood but his brain quickly made the math: Danse would call him  _ Elder _ on sigh and expose his lie.

“Elder Maxson of the Brotherhood of Steel.” He said with his hands tied behind his back. “I’m here for Paladin Danse. This power armor here is his.”

He pointed at it before getting back into his initial position. He knew Nate’s eyes on him from where he was hiding. He knew Nate was champing at the bit while he waited for Arthur’s sign.

Garvey looked over his shoulder to check on the armor. “I see you have a good eye, Elder. Since when are you coming down your mighty airship to get your missing soldiers?”

At that precise moment, Arthur decided he didn’t like the man very much. 

“I suggest you take me to him now, General.” He said fighting the urge to enter the place without any authorization. “He’s the only reason I’m here, I’m not looking to trouble you.”

“You’re already bringing us trouble by threatening settlers for their crops.”

“I beg your pardon?” Arthur replied with a tint of annoyance in his husky voice.

Nate had told him the same thing two nights ago. Did the people of the Commonwealth really think that badly of the Brotherhood? Was their reputation that eroded? 

They  _ protected _ the farmers in exchange for resources, nothing else. Proctor Teagan gave him regular updates and reports on the whole thing and Arthur never ordered crops to be stolen. 

“I have two settlements telling me how your men came to force them into giving a portion of their harvest.”

“This is a misund…” A shot fired, sending Arthur’s words into the void.

A scream echoed against the walls, followed by others.

Pressing his lucky knife against Marcy Long’s throat, Nate grinned when he saw Garvey running right back inside the settlement.

“’Sup, Preston? Been a while.”

“Everyone holds your fire!” Preston yelled as he got closer, his hands raised to accompany his words. “No one shoot unless I give the signal.”

Nate tightly held his hostage against him, strategically placed near an exit if things went sour. “I didn’t expect to see you there, I thought you were playing king of the people back in Sanctuary.”

Behind Garvey he caught a glimpse of Arthur's silhouette, surprise and deception painted on Arthur's face.  _ I’m sorry _ , Nate thought as if their eyes could communicate. 

He had waited. He tried so hard while Arthur worked their way in but as the minutes passed, his mind kept pushing and pushing. His fear of Gage’s fate won over his senses and logic. He didn’t act like a leader, but as a man too tired of worrying sick for his best friend.

Nate had snuck around the settlement, hiding in the water to get closer. His armor and clothes were soaking wet when he climbed the wall from the unguarded river side. Marcy Long being the one for a shield was the perfect addition. 

“You’re wasted potential.” Preston said in a calm voice, clearly not wanting to let things escalate. “You would have been such an inspiration among the Minutemen ranks if only you choose the right side.”

“Fuck off, Garvey! Without me you’d be a deathclaw’s turd decaying in Concord. I wasn’t gonna run errands for you just because you’re too much of a pussy to do it yourself.” Nate spat, anger filling his voice like it possessed him.

He wanted to burn the place to the ground. Feel the heat of the flames rising in the reflection of his eyes while smiling at the spectacle. 

“Let me go…” Marcy pleaded between two breaths.

It only made Nate chuckle, his laugh sounding like the gates of hell. The light, easy-going man he was around the people he liked was buried deep in him, somewhere Gage only had the key for.

“Bring me Gage, now. He better be alive or…” Nate pressed the knife close enough to Marcy’s throat to draw the first drops of blood. “This annoying bitch will finally shut her mouth for good.”

Arthur had needed time to process the whole situation and realize what was actually going on in front of his eyes.

He was pissed, angry at Nate.  _ Disappointed _ . This was not the way of doing things. Hostages were never a possibility to resolve conflict, much less provoking everyone around them.

But as he saw Nate surrounded by armed Minutemen all around, Arthur had felt a sudden fear all over his body, taking over his mind like a storm.

“Nate!” He said not even thinking about revealing they were together. “What are you thinking?!”

“Not now, can’t you see I’m busy making Marcy a pretty red necklace?” Nate met his gaze and it struck Arthur.

Nate’s eyes were as dark as the night, with no place for his usual charm and shining glances. His body was tense, steady. Arthur found him so different from the man casually walking around in a towel last night, washing clothes and doing chores. 

He was a raider. He was the Overboss of Nuka World and there was no seeing past it. 

It broke something in Arthur’s head – or his heart. He wasn’t sure, unable to fully comprehend his feeling in the middle of the chaotic scene taking place.

The look on Arthur’s face could have made Nate step back in another life, when he was still a normal guy trying to live his life after his discharge from the army.

Except he wasn’t that man anymore. He had died two hundred years ago, only leaving an empty shell ready to be filled with a savage rage.

Preston got a step closer, making Nate walk a step back while still holding Marcy against him.

“Gage is here indeed.” Garvey said. “But I won’t free him unless you agree to our conditions.”

Nate let a devilish laugh escape from his lips as he shook his head. “You better bring him now or your settlements will turn into a perfection depiction of  _ death _ .” He hissed the word in a provocative tone.

He would do it, whatever the cost. He was ready to die fighting for Gage.

“Think it through, Nate.” Preston answered. “You don’t stand a chance here. Drop the knife, there is still hope for you, you know. You don’t have to live like this, this is below you.” His voice was calm, almost soothing. 

Preston Garvey had always wanted to do things right, to help people at the cost of taking blows in the process. It was actually really selfless and Nate would have admired him in another life.

But in the Wasteland, he found it useless. A fight lost in advance, only to tire the people battling against a global evil that already won when the bombs dropped.

“Your hopes are blinding you.” Nate said with his voice hoarse with rage. “You’re the one who doesn’t stand a chance. Did you really think Maxson would come alone for Danse, with the Prydwen so close from here?”

I didn’t take Arthur more than a second to figure out Nate’s plan when their eyes met again. 

The devilish grin on Nate’s face ignited his chest, while his mind told him to end him right there and now.

When Garvey turned around to face him, Arthur nodded. “I have four squads circling the place, ready to strike if they hear another single shot.” He noticed some guards already walking towards the gates. “No need, you won’t find them. I wouldn’t let them stay in the open.”

“Is that what the Brotherhood is, then?” Preston exclaimed. “Making alliances with raiders to come after us?” 

Arthur bit his tongue, his jaw tightening to the clear evidence the Brotherhood wasn’t seen as he wanted it to be - yet, he didn’t respond. It wasn’t the time for another quarrel.

“You started this!” Nate yelled as the poor woman he held started crying. “You’re the one holding Gage and Danse, we’re only here for them. You’re forcing us to ally.  Give up, Garvey. I have over twenty raiders waiting for only one mistake from you. ”

Arthur was surprised at how easily Nate lied. It felt like it was a language he was fluent in. Siding with Nate’s story for Danse’s sake, Arthur took a step towards Garvey.

“How did Danse come into your settlement? He has been missing after an incident.”

“A caravan found him lying unconscious and brought him here. That raider, Gage, probably is responsible for what happened to your Paladin. The one hanging out with you will kill you when he gets the opportunity.”  Garvey said, his eyes dark as he looked over Nate. “They’re slavers who kidnap people all over the Commonwealth to have them exploited in their park and you’re giving your trust to the one in charge of those atrocities!”

The words slapped Arthur across the face. Garvey was tragically right - Nate was the incarnation of the criminal wrath scorching the Commonwealth. 

Another problem added to the shitpile that had started almost a week ago.

“Your alliance with those raiders is as fragile as old glass. Gage tried to kill your soldier. ” Either Garvey didn’t know they were also in the vertibird crash, or he was as good as Nate at lying. Arthur decided to go with the first option. “In that case, the Brotherhood would be grateful to you if you brought Danse to us, as well as the raider. We will deal with him as we see fit.” He turned his head towards Nate, their eyes meeting with a discreet complicity. “As for the Overboss, I’ll handle him myself.”

“You don’t have what it takes, Maxson.” Nate replied with a sharp laugh, clearly amused by the situation.  “The Pack would pay a good price to have you in a cage.”

“I suggest you shut that mouth of yours, raider. Your last words shouldn’t be wasted on your own stupidity.”

_ That bastard is taking the opportunity to bash me _ , Nate thought.

He liked that. In over a week, Arthur Maxson had revealed himself more human than he thought, actually acting like the proper young man he was. 

“Not sure you wanna see my raiders fighting your men. They’re thirsty for blood.” Nate smirked, his heart throbbing in his chest from the excitement and his fears for Gage.

“Do you see where this is leading you, Elder?” Preston’s voice rose above their little fake quarrel. “Choose the right side. When this goes sour, you don't want your soldiers to be on two different front lines.”

Nate wanted to smack that prick’s hat from his head and make him choke on it. What if Arthur turned his back on him? They had agreed on waiting before another war but Nate couldn’t blindly trust Arthur.

“What are your conditions, then?” Arthur asked Garvey in a tone that sounded  _ too _ real to Nate’s ears.

“If we agree to this…” Preston said above their little fake quarrel. “The Brotherhood owes us an assistance.”

“At long as it’s not against Nuka World.” Nate stated in a threatening voice, his knife still pressed against Marcy’s bloody throat.

“Your days will be over soon.” The General replied with a clear bitterness he couldn’t hide.  “That reign of terror and slavery is coming to its end. There is nothing human left in you.”

“Fine.” Arthur interjected. “We’ll discuss this in a better time. Now, I ask that you bring Danse and the raider.”

Nate knew Arthur would make him pay for this and not in a way he would like. As if things weren’t rocky enough between the two of them. 

Garvey gestured to one of his men. “Can you bring the Paladin and the raider, please?”

“Yes, General.” The man said before heading to the room next to the amphitheater. 

The following seconds seemed like hours. Nate had trouble breathing, his eyes focused on the room. His blade felt like an extension of his own fingers choking Marcy.

Then a shadow emerged from the door, followed by a second. And a third which made his heart jump from his chest. Walking towards them, hands and ankles in chains, was Gage. He was alive and in one piece, breathing.

Nate, on the other hand, felt his lungs filling themselves and holding the air like thieves. He couldn’t hold a smile as his eyes shone under the sun when they met Gage’s gaze.

“Took you fucking long enough, boss.” His raspy voice soothed Nate’s mind.

Relief ran through his blood like a glass of liquor, the feeling almost ecstatic. “Sorry, couldn’t find what to wear.” Nate replied with a smile carved on his lips.

Arthur exhaled with relief to the sight of Danse, still standing on his feet. The Paladin’s eyes widened when they laid on him. 

“Elder Maxson, are you here for me?”

“I am, Paladin. I’m taking you home.” Arthur nodded gravely, his role taking over his natural comforted reaction.

Arthur’s gaze turned to Nate’s, a silent dialogue slowly dancing between their eyes.  _ How could we even fight each other when we work so well together? _ Arthur thought to himself.

“Drop your knife, this is over. I should have never let you work with us.” 

“Set Gage free, now.” Nate spat with a biting anger. “Remove the chains, or I remove one of her ears.” His blade got closer to Marcy’s earlobe as she kept shaking in fear.

Arthur walked over Gage, extended his hand toward the guard holding the key. “May I?”

“Are you sure of what you’re doing here?” Garvey said.

“Like I said, I have squads outside. It’s safer for your settler.  If the raiders try anything, the Brotherhood will be ready.” Arthur replied as he freed Gage from his chains.

Gage’s only eye didn’t leave Nate’s silhouette, like a guardian to the man who actually came to his rescue.

“Here, he’s free.” Arthur added. “Now, leave her be and surrender. You have nowhere to run.”

“Such a shame.” Nate purred, his eyes locked on him. “I really enjoyed our little journey. Will you come to visit when you’ll lock me up, Elder?”

“Drop the knife.”

Slowly, Nate walked forward still holding his hostage. “You know what? I don’t think I will. You’re all gonna let Gage and I walk out from here freely  and if anyone tries coming after us, you’ll find yourself surrounded by raiders. ”

Arthur clenched his jaw. Did Nate  _ really _ have to put so much of a show?  He was being totally reckless and relying too much on luck and bluffing to get out. An injury or worse would come so fast Arthur wouldn’t get the chance to stop anything from happening to Nate.

Arthur couldn’t accept it as much as he hated the feeling growing in his chest - the vicious fear for Nate’s safety. 

With his blue eyes catching Nate’s, Arthur tried hardly to get to his brain.  _ Let me deal with this, dumbass! _

Still walking towards the main gate, Nate was followed closely by Gage. Arthur looked around them, checking the Minutemen and the possibility of one of them firing at the raiders without warning. He couldn’t have Nate injured. He  _ didn’t want _ it to happen.

“It’s your funeral.” Arthur finally said.

“What are you doing?!” Garvey exclaimed, getting his laser musket to aim at Nate.

“They won’t make it far. My men will get them, it’s going to be a target practice for them  and the remaining raiders don’t stand a chance. ”

If he wasn’t holding Marcy so tight, Nate would have already fallen in Gage’s arms. 

What he wanted now was to run away from here as fast as possible and finally know his friend is safe and out of any danger.

“Stay right behind me.” Nate said to his second in command as they passed the main gate.

“Are you sure about this? I’m not armed anymore.” Gage’s voice was music to his ears, like a song he finally could remember after days of having it stuck in his head.

“Trust me.” He replied under his breath. “Alright, Marcy. Seems like it’s your lucky day! Don’t be too much of a pain in the ass to the others when you’ll complain about me tonight.”

Nate kicked her in the back to throw her right back inside the settlement and turned tail to immediately run away, followed by Gage in the streets of Boston.

“There, General. It shouldn’t be long before those raiders finally die.” Arthur said as if the simple idea of Nate passing didn’t wrench his heart. “I thought the Overboss was actually interested in helping us find Danse and the raider. Instead, he was responsible for Danse’s disappearance. Sick power play.”

“ I sure hope you're right. I’ve been waiting to finally have the occasion to face Nate again and you let him go, ” said Preston.

“You’re a good man. You did what was the best for your settlement.” Arthur replied, looking at Garvey. This is what he actually wanted to be:, someone seen as the protector of the weakest, instead of a threat because of his role at leading an army stronger than any group in the Commonwealth. 

“ Don’t forget that I had your Brotherhood’s back there. If it had been just Nate, the outcome would have been different. You're having troubles with raiders, you made a bad decision but it can be fixed. We can help the BoS fighting them to free the Commonwealth, but first we need to agree on some terms.”

Arthur fought against the need to sigh - Garvey was becoming a whole other problem thanks to Nate’s recklessness. “What are you terms, then?”

“We need you to leave our settlements alone and find another way to feed your troops.”

Arthur inhaled, his jaw clenched and his fist tightened behind his back. He would have rather sent an expedition to the Glowing Sea to find whatever object the Minutemen might have needed.

He couldn’t just refuse his demand without taking the risk of becoming a prisoner himself. His imaginary squads outside the walls wouldn’t be of a great help. He nodded. “I’ll give the order as soon as I return to the Prydwen.  Here’s mine: when we’ll find where the Institute hides, the Minutemen will be joining us in the fight. ”

Garvey, nodding, extended his hand towards Arthur. “I agree on the destruction of the Institute.”

Arthur shook Garvey’s hand before starting to step back.

“I’ll only ask of one last thing for our help and cooperation.”

“I’m listening.”

“Proof of Nate’s death, I need you to bring it to me if you want the Minutemen to stay clear with the Brotherhood.”

Arthur swallowed with difficulty. He’d have to think of something to persuade Garvey of Nate’s actual death. He would have to invent something with Nate after they find each other again.

“You will receive your proof. Now if you would excuse me, I must return to my airship.” Arthur said, stretching out his arm to shake the General’s hand.

“I’m sorry that you had to deal with him to find your Paladin. When we met, he was a nice man before losing himself with those demons back in Nuka World, only to become the worst of them.”

_ How could a demon sooth Arthur’s out so easily, then?  _

Garvey wasn’t wrong, however. Nate was the Devil himself when he grinned and used his hoarse voice to light up the flames of Hell inside Arthur’s body.

“He saved my life two years ago and I’m sure it’s one of his biggest regrets. He’d want to see me with one of those explosive collars around my neck more than his old life.”

“What collars?” Arthur asked, his curiosity picked.

“Nate and his raiders put collars around the neck of people they kidnap. Innocent people are brought into slavery and if they try to run away, the collar exploses.”

It made Arthur's stomach turn. How much darkness stayed hidden behind Nate’s smiles and flirting habits? 

“It’s inhuman behavior.” Arthur replied with an undetached tone - but his heart wrenched as it tried to bury all the cruel truths about Nate. “The Brotherhood will deal with the rest of Nuka World, you can stay focused on making the Commonwealth a better place for its people.”

After shaking the General’s hand one last time, Arthur turned tail to walk over Danse. It felt weird seeing him without his power armor, even if he was still taller than him out of it.

“It’s good to have you back, Paladin.” Arthur said, nodding to him. “Get into your power armor and let’s get out of here.”

“I’m afraid it’s out of power, Elder. I lost my spare fusion cores in the crash.”

“Here.” Arthur took the fusion core out of Final Judgment and held it to Danse. “You can’t leave it here.”

“Sir, this is your weapon’s ammunition, it’s more important.” Danse replied, shaking his head.

“This is an order, Paladin. Take it.” Arthur didn’t wait for his response as he put the fusion core in Danse’s hand. “Time to go.”

Arthur gave one last look to Garvey before stepping out of the settlement with Danse behind him, tracing Nate’s path to find his way back to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday guys!  
> What a better way to celebrate than having Gage and Danse back?? 🥰🥰  
> I love Preston and the Minutemen, but Nate is Nate and he had to be a total douche here, sorry 🙃
> 
> A big thank you to Kara for her precious help! <3  
> See you next Sunday for chapter 16!


	16. A beautiful love story

The raiders stopped in an old bookstore, heavy breathing from the run.

Without waiting for his heart to calm down, Nate grabbed Gage by the arm and pressed his friend against him, pulling him into a hug he couldn’t even control.

Resting his head on Gage’s shoulder, Nate squeezed his back with all his might, not bothering about the fact Gage might be hurt.

“You’re alive, oh god you’re alive!” Nate whispered heavily as he kept compressing his chest against Gage’s.

“I won’t be for too long if you keep squeezing me like that.” Gage said, struggling to speak.

“Sorry, sorry! Are you hurt?” Nate stepped back, his hands already checking out for any wounds.

“Broke my fucking leg when we crashed, but those pussies gave me some stimpaks. It’s still painful, but I can use it.”

“Shit, sorry for making you run.” Nate said, his eyes lowering to gaze at Gage’s legs. “Please, forgive me for taking so much time finding you. I… fuck, I feel like shit. I’ve been keeping up on the mission and I’m the worst friend ever.” His voice was low under his breathing.

Nate could have cried from all the shame weighting on his heart.  _ No one gets left behind _ , he repeated to himself in the army. It was a creed he spat on when he left the crashing site without Gage at his side.

“I thought you were dead.” Gage said, raising his hand to pat his boss’ cheek. “I felt like shit too for being weak enough to be taken by the Minutemen while you were nowhere to be seen.”

“Aw, you worried about me.” Nate giggled with his fingers getting a hold on Gage’s wrist before seriousness came back in his gaze. “I promise to never leave you behind ever again. Shoot me dead if I do.”

“Don’t give me opportunities like that, boss. You might regret it.” Gage let a hearty laugh escape his lips. “Love you, man.”

“Love you too.” Nate replied, holding his friend against him once again.

“Quick, they are eventually going to notice that there is no squad surrounding their settlement.” Arthur said over his shoulder as he hurried between the streets of Boston.

“You lied to them?” Danse asked, the sound of his power armor stammering against the concrete.

“I had to. I couldn’t have them imprisoning the Overboss or worse.” Saying it out loud felt foreign on Arthur’s tongue. He had protected a raider above innocent people, going against what he wanted the Brotherhood to stand for.

It made him feel like shit, much less of the leader he worked so hard to be.

But at the same time, losing Nate was simply out of the question. They still had a whole mystery to uncover and Arthur couldn’t take the risk rushing the war between the BoS and Nuka-World.

He instead focused on the road, trying to find traces of the raiders and where they could be hiding, even though he also wanted to interrogate Danse about his disappearance and the days he had spent among the Minutemen. 

That would be a conversation for later, when they finally get reunited with the two raiders to hear the full story. One thing was very clear, however: Arthur was more pissed at Nate than he had ever been towards anyone. 

He finally caught a glimpse of the raiders’ silhouettes in a decaying building, the two of them laughing together – it made Arthur’s blood boil even more.

“What the absolute fuck were you thinking?!” Arthur yelled, strongly pushing Nate against a dusty wall. “You could have had the four of us killed!”

Nate coughed from the dust coming all over him before pushing Arthur back with less force than him. 

“Except I didn’t!”

Arthur’s anger rose in his veins, making his breathing heavier as he grabbed Nate by the chest piece of his armor. 

“You’re a reckless walking time bomb!”

Stepping into the scene, Gage placed himself next to Nate and pushed Arthur away with the force his boss clearly held back earlier, both of his hands sending Arthur a few steps back, almost stumbling.

“Get away from him.” Gage said with a raging tone coming out of his gritted teeth.

Danse quickly put himself in front of Arthur, shielding him with his power armor. Those kinds of responses from his soldiers always made him feel weird, a sentiment he couldn’t really find the right words to express. Arthur always felt too precious but not in a weak way, more like no one in the Brotherhood could afford him getting injured or worse. He hated that he didn’t even have the  _ time _ to stand up for himself anytime someone showed any aggression towards him.

“Stand down, Paladin. I got the situation under control.” Arthur said while walking back to the front.

Nate coughed again, the feeling of all those tiny particles of dust finding their way through is nose and mouth being too itchy.

“I got us out, didn’t I?” Nate said, stepping away from the wall. “If Garvey wasn’t there, then maybe it could have worked with only you going, but that guy would have never,  _ never _ let you walk out of there with Gage.”

“You don’t know that!” Arthur yelled with his hands raising alongside his words.

“I do! Gage is too much of an asset to me. I couldn’t let it happen, I stand by my decision of getting in.” Nate said, already walking towards the exit.

“And taking a hostage in the process, a glorious way of thinking.” Arthur replied as his eyes followed Nate’s movements.

“We’re fucking raiders.” Gage interjected with his usual unbothered tone. God, Nate had missed those intonations. “What did you expect from him? To come and ask for my release? Maybe even bringing cookies?”

“I had the  _ pleasure _ of getting to know your ways.” Arthur said. “It clearly doesn’t equate with ours.”

Nate sighed, pressing his fingertips against his forehead. “What’s done is done.” He said with a cutting tone. “No need to scold me for hours, it’s a lesson I’ll never learn and you know it.” 

His green eyes turned to Arthur, fatigue in his gaze. They finally found Gage and Danse, now wasn’t the moment to start a fight about something already in the past. It was Nate’s way of thinking for much of his troubles; why care if you couldn’t rewind the past? He left  _ two centuries _ behind him, a few minutes with a hostage was nothing to him.

“We head to the Prydwen.” Arthur finally said after a long silence. “We don’t stop until we’re there.”

The lights coming from the airship gave Arthur a nice, warm feeling in his chest. He was finally home. Walking in the airport, he saluted the soldiers he ran into, talking with some of them about the past week and his sudden disappearance. People had been worried about him, picturing the death of the Elder in the hands of raiders.

Yet, here Arthur was, alongside those said raiders. Casting a look over his shoulder, Arthur watched Nate under the light, clearly amused by a conversation with Gage.

On the road to the Prydwen, Danse and Gage gave their side of the story of their disappearance in the hands of the Minutemen; when the vertibird crashed, they had been sent flying with much more violence than Arthur and Nate.

Danse’s life was saved by his power armor, as his body was thrown several feet away from the crashing site.

On the other hand, Gage had landed in a tree and fell from it a few seconds after, breaking his left leg in the process. His body dropped not so far from Danse’s, giving the Minutemen the idea about the two of them fighting one another.

The walk to the settlement had drained Danse’s fusion core, forcing him out of his power armor not long after their arrival. Gage’s injury had been dealt with, but he was quickly locked up in a room to be used as a bargaining chip in negotiations with Nuka-World. 

Meanwhile, Danse had benefited from better treatment and even had a few conversations with Garvey that would see themselves useful to the Brotherhood. Arthur didn’t see them becoming long term allies, but mutual help might be possible in their fight against the Institute, even though the idea of relying on them wasn’t to his liking–not to mention the obvious ongoing war between the Minutemen and Nuka-World.

If a choice had to be made, Arthur feared he wouldn’t be keen on turning his back on Nate, albeit the raider’s ways and reckless behavior.

Arthur knew his fair share of information on the Minutemen, but his relationship with Nate–something he couldn’t quite describe properly, not a friendship but not something worse–would definitely weigh in the decision.

“Oh no, no fucking way.” Nate’s voice echoed in Arthur’s ears. 

Arthur grinned to the raider’s words. The vertibird to access the Prydwen was roaring, its blades circling above the small group. 

“What is it? You still want that rope?” 

“Not funny to play with someone’s fear.” Nate replied with his brows furrowed, his head shaking.

“We’re safe aboard this one.” Danse said, gesturing to the vertibird waiting for them.

Nate was already stepping back, still shaking his head and muttering something Arthur couldn’t even try to read on his lips. It was a sight far from what he got used to from Nate, distant from his usual playful tone and cocky jokes. 

It felt like Nate would run away any second, without a single warning. Had the crash affected him this much? 

It was a reaction Arthur had already seen among the ranks of the Brotherhood; soldiers closing themselves off after a difficult mission, needing to spend a great amount of time in Cade’s office. Those traumas sometimes led to a discharge from the fighting ranks and on rare occasions turned into a much darker outcome.

Arthur had seen one of his lancers take her own life, once. The images were still stuck in his brain, coming back from times to times–like right now.

Lancer Gibson had lost a member of her crew, a knight she was very close to. A casualty of the war against the abominations roaming the Commonwealth. She had spent countless hours with Cade, trying to fight back the demons in her head.

One night, when the heat was eating all the space in his quarters, Arthur had walked to the flying deck, to allow himself his first smoke in over three months. As he was leaning against the railing, he had noticed a silhouette on the other side of the deck. Lancer Gibson, who had been sobbing for days, was standing there, her face blank. 

As Arthur got closer, it struck him. Life had gone from her brown eyes. She was holding her rifle tightly in her hand, contemplating the void below their feet. 

He could remember so clearly every detail, from the holes in her jacket to the way her hands didn’t shake, and the noise coming from her weapon as she shot herself in the head, before her body fell beyond the railing, down to the ground hundreds of feet below.

Arthur remembered running towards her, trying to grab her lifeless body before the fall but he had failed her for a second time.

Her body was never found, taken by the sea. His last memory of her was the twitching of her hair as she disappeared in the void.

Blond hair, just like Nate’s as he was brushing it, his fingers pressed on the back of his head while he paced around, still muttering to himself. 

It hit Arthur; the recollections of Nate’s reaction right after the crash, his injured arm he kept hidden, and the crippling fear coming from his eyes to the simple idea of getting back aboard a vertibird again.

Nate had gone through something that had left a part of his brain like an abandoned battlefield. 

Arthur took a step forward, concerned by Nate’s reaction in the lights of this eye-opener.

“No, I got this.” Gage abruptly said with his hand raised to stop Arthur from getting closer.

It broke something in Arthur’s chest to be left out so suddenly after being at Nate’s side for days.

Nate’s breathing was getting faster, his chest rising and falling at a quick pace. His head kept replaying the crash all over again, the details going to the taste of smoke on the tip of his tongue.

Pacing on the ground of the airport, Nate was talking to himself in a hushed tone, repeating the same words.  _ This is fine, you’re fine. This is fine, you’re fine _ .

He wasn’t.

“Boss, it’s alright. It’s only for a few seconds.” Gage’s voice seemed so far away, lost in the fog settled in Nate’s mind. 

Gage got closer to him, gently resting his palm on Nate’s biceps. 

“Stop moving around, just stop and take the time to breathe.”

“I can’t.” Nate spluttered between two heavy breaths, his eyes fixed on the concrete ground he was walking back and forth on. He wanted to be fine, to just forget all about this and board the vertibird without a single thought. Why did he have to break like this? Why was he still a victim of his own trauma years after the landmine accident?

Why him in the first place?

“Boss, listen to me. It’s gonna be real quick, nothing can happen to us here. As much as it burns my mouth to say it, we’re safe with them all.”

“You can’t be sure of that. You can’t.” Nate’s heartbeat was like a hammer hitting against his torso, each strike harder than the last. It felt like the poor muscle would explode any second. 

“I can’t see you die like them.” He added with a broken voice, the name of his fallen brothers in arms burning in his mind in a vivid fire.

With a gentleness he was unused to, Gage grabbed Nate’s shoulder to shake him a bit. 

“Nate! This isn’t Alaska! Look at me, hey, look at me.” Gage said, forcing his gaze in Nate’s lost eyes. “Whatever you’re picturing right now is not real, it’s your mind playing tricks on you. C’mon, take a deep breath.”

Nate closed his eyes, fighting against the warfare ruling in his skull to regain power over his lungs. “I need a drink.” He mumbled in a half, broken voice. “I feel like shit.”

“At least you feel something.” Gage replied as he took a flask out of Nate’s pants pocket. “Here.”

Nate raised the flask to his lips, the bittersweet taste of liquor running down his sore throat already helping him clearing his thoughts. 

“Fine, let’s do it before I change my mind.” He said, sniffing as a reflex to help him concentrate.

Nate walked by Arthur, extending his shaking hand to grab the handle of the vertibird. 

“Hey, are you alright?” Arthur asked with a soft voice.

“I am.” Nate replied somewhat harshly, too focused on his task of not letting his fear take over again.

Arthur watched the scribes working on the many objects he had sent aboard the vertibird earlier this morning. The first reports came in when the four of them had docked on the Prydwen, an initiate running to Arthur, asking him to speak with the scribes.

The uniforms were legit, a true craft from the Brotherhood–as for the holotags, they belonged to M.I.A soldiers. 

Arthur couldn’t help but fear an insurrection of a rogue group, deserters attacking raiders to get the Brotherhood in trouble with Nuka-World. He didn’t want to believe it, for it would be much more damaging to his position considering his previous exploit with the Outcasts. He couldn’t fail at something he brilliantly succeeded in accomplishing during his teenage years.

The idea of those missing soldiers being abducted by another party was a possibility he found more realistic, however. The BoS reputation in the Commonwealth clearly wasn’t what Artur had thought to be the past two years–it wouldn’t be a surprise to be a victim of kidnapping and identity theft.

As for the frozen body, it was still in the hands of Neriah. Arthur hoped for quick information, the corpse being a possible missing piece of that odd puzzle.

“Did they try to hurt you?” Nate asked, leaning against the doorway of the sickbay. 

Gage was lying on the gurney, being examined by Cade. The physician had inspected the raider’s leg, confirming that the fracture was healing properly and that a few stimpaks would accelerate the process.

“No, it’s not the Minutemen’s way anyway. They just locked me up with some food. More than the single tato we had when we got imprisoned here.” Gage said in a laugh.

“Are you really spitting on the Brotherhood while I’m doing your medical examination?” Cade asked, not stopping his work.

“Freedom of speech.” 

Nate smiled softly at his friend’s words. Having him back was a weight off his chest.

“Don’t hurt him, doc. He’s precious to me.” Nate giggled, his arms crossed over his armor. “I forgot to tell you something by the way, when Mags was in Somerville.”

Arthur and Nate had given Danse and Gage a full update of what happened while on the road, feeding them with a bunch of information.

“Yeah what? Did she finally force her brother to get rid of that shit haircut?” Gage said in a mocking voice, his eye shining under the sickbay’s lights.

“No, unfortunately, William is still looking like… that.  _ But, _ Mags was quite worried about your fate.” Nate grinned as the words came out of his lips.

The two always had a cat-dog like relationship, the two of them often engaging in verbal jousting with Nate playing referee between them.

“Nah, you’re shitting me. She was probably delighted to hear about my disappearance.” 

“No, I swear! She really was worried.” Nate raised his shoulder as he talked, the grin still drawn on his lips. “Maybe it’s the beginning of a beautiful love story.”

“Oh piss off!” Gage exclaimed, throwing the first thing he could grab at Nate–a surgical tray that made Cade jump.

“Hey! Can’t you two children behave?” Cade interjected, impatience in his voice which only made Nate and Gage laugh at his poor soul.

Arthur walked to the sickbay, hearing the loud laughing coming from it. He had to admit, raiders were a nice distraction to the usual structured, organized flow of people aboard the airship.

“Dude! Don’t you think my face is already scared enough?” Arthur's heart jumped at the sound of Nate's voice echoing throughout the corridor.

His body wouldn’t stop reacting to the raider, he just knew it. It didn’t get better either when he spotted Nate’s silhouette leaned against the doorframe. His figure was muscular, but thin at the same time.  _ Just enough _ , Arthur thought to himself before shaking his head to kick those ideas out of his mind.

“Nate, may I have a word?” Arthur asked when he got close enough.

Nate looked over his shoulder, his smile striking Arthur once again. How long would it last before it would start to fade?

“Damn, you’re really developing a taste for saying my name.” Nate purred, turning over to face him. “Can’t wait to hear you moan it, now.”

“This past hour, you’ve barely been talking and now this? How am I supposed to figure you out?” Arthur sighed, despair in his voice. Nate’s words were already making their way to his mind, however. 

Arthur cursed his own brain as it started to project him various scenes of the two of them entwined between the soft fabric of his sheets. The feeling of Nate’s fingers running down Arthur’s bare skin, leaving scratch marks in their path. The sensation of Arthur’s strong arms holding Nate tight against him, their naked bodies moving against one another under the soft music of their moans and the echo of their kisses.

“Do you really want me to answer that?” Nate asked, forcing Arthur out of his lascivious thoughts.

Shaking his head, Arthur sighed. He couldn’t keep going on that subject, it was a battle he had already lost. 

“Follow me, this is important.” Arthur finally said before turning his heels, heading to the command deck.

When they got there, Arthur’s reflexes quickly returned. He looked through the window bay, night time offering quite the sight.

“So, tell me.” Nate walked up to him, resting his hands on the railing.

“Garvey asked me for proof of your death.”

Arthur heard Nate snorting next to him. “Right, didn’t expect that from my boy Preston. Dude is finally stepping up his game.”

“He’s expecting it, I’m sure he thought he would already have it by now.”

“Looks like the Brotherhood is in trouble.” Nate’s voice ran on a mocking tone, making Arthur impatient. 

“Can you be serious for a second?” 

Looking at Nate couldn’t keep Arthur’s features angry, however. He softened even more when the raider took his armor chest piece away. 

“What are you doing?” Arthur asked, not looking away from Nate’s fingers as they got rid of the protection.

“I’ve been wearing this pendant for years.” Nate removed something from around his neck, gold shining suddenly in Arthur's eyes.

He hadn’t noticed the necklace when Nate got almost naked yesterday, being too focused on the many scars decorating his skin.

Nate handed it to Arthur, who took it with delicacy. 

“Preston knows about it, we talked about it before I realized he was a douche.”

Arthur looked closely at the pendant. Its shape reminded him of a wave carved into gold–not the kind he would have expected to be worn by a raider. 

“You value this, don’t you?”

“It belonged to my big sister.”

“You have a sister?” Arthur couldn’t hide the surprise in his voice. The more he learned about Nate, the more layered he seemed to be.

“Had. She died when the bombs fell.” Nate’s voice felt hollow.

“Shit, I’m so sorry.” Arthur looked at him, feeling a sudden emptiness in his chest. He didn’t know what it was like to grow up with siblings, to have that kind of relationship with someone sharing your own blood; but seeing Nate’s saddened features, it weighed down on him like he knew. 

Arthur couldn’t let Nate give up on a souvenir of his family and life before the war, even for the mission. 

He grabbed Nate’s hand, forcing his palm open. 

“You know what, keep it. It’s stupid anyway, he’ll know soon enough you are not dead.”

He put the necklace into Nate’s palm with his left hand, while fighting the urge to brush his skin with the right one.

“Told you Minutemen were useless.” Nate smiled softly. “Thank you.” 

Arthur looked down to their hands. Nate hadn’t pulled away from his. 

“Of course, it means a lot to you.” Arthur whispered, his fingers slowly closing Nate’s fist on the pendant.

He could feel Nate’s gaze on him, those green eyes running from his hair to his lips. Arthur’s heart couldn’t handle this much emotion in such a short period of time.

In his field of vision, he could see Nate’s chest rising a bit faster. Arthur looked up, meeting his gaze. He felt compelled by Nate’s eyes, the way they seemed to see right through to Arthur’s soul.

Neither of them pulled away their hand. It felt like seconds turned into minutes. Like the state of the world wasn’t as alarming as the state of Arthur’s mind.

Arthur could have stayed hours like this, just looking into the details of Nate’s face–then he heard the echo of footsteps pacing under the floor they stood on.

Arthur had actually forgotten about Kells and his crew being so close. Clearing his throat, he took a step back, missing the heat from Nate’s fingers as he pulled away.

“I, hum.” Nate stumbled on his own voice. “I’m gonna go back to the sickbay, Gage’s probably wondering where I am.”

“Of course, I’m not keeping you here any longer.” Arthur articulated with much more difficulty than he thought. “If you ever need to look for me, I’ll probably be on the main deck with Proctor Quinlan, discussing our findings.”

“Roger that.” Nate replied, awkwardly not moving from the room. 

“Do you need anything else?” That simple question made Arthur’s heart swell with fear–or was it anticipation?

Like he was finally coming back to his senses, Nate shook his head. 

“No, no, sorry. See you later.” He said before quickly heading out of the command deck, almost like he was pursued by an invisible threat.

Arthur heavily sighed once alone, pulling on his hair as if it could get his thoughts in the right order–but how could he even do that, when all of them were about Nate?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sunday update yaaay ✨  
> Less action in this one, but I loved writing about their thoughts!  
> I'd love to hear your feedback on this 👀
> 
> A big thank you to Kara for her precious help with this! <3  
> See you next Sunday for something big 👀


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